Macular Degeneration

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fuqua24@hotmail.com - 18 Oct 2007 19:53 GMT

My grandfather suffers from macular degeneration and it has
practically robbed him of all vision. He can make out objects but
that is it. If I stand directly in front of him he would not know
that it was me. Me question is does anyone know about any good
preventative tips that I can take now to help me avoid this disease
when I get older? Also, is this disease and inherited disease?

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Kay Lancaster - 19 Oct 2007 03:42 GMT

> that it was me. Me question is does anyone know about any good
> preventative tips that I can take now to help me avoid this disease
> when I get older? Also, is this disease and inherited disease?

-- If you smoke, quit. If you don't smoke, don't start. There's a
2-5x risk increase for AMD in smokers. Secondhand smoke seems to be
about as bad as smoking yourself.

-- Keep your blood pressure under control.

-- Wear UV absorbing lenses outside, preferably with a hat or visor.

-- Eat well -- lots of fruits and veggies, low fat, low cholesterol.
Leafy, dark green veggies are particularly loaded with lutein and
zeaxanthin, a couple of antioxidants that seem very useful in preventing
further damage in AMD.

-- Talk to your doctor about AREDS.

-- At your regular eye checkups, ask your doc for a copy of an Amsler grid,
which will look like a piece of black and white graph paper. Here's
what you *don't* want to see on an Amsler grid:
http://www.macular-degeneration.org/WetDry/WetamslerMain.html
If you see something like that bottom illustration, call immediately,
because early treatment can help.

I am not a people doctor, but I watched both my mom and my grandmother
go through AMD, and I'm determined I'm going to do what I can to be on
the low risk end of things. I have no signs of macular degeneration,
and my doctors, knowing both family history and my eating habits, have
not recommended going with AREDS supplements. Your doctors may feel
differently.

There is an early-onset form of macular degeneration that is genetic, and
hints of genetic traits that may predispose you to AMD, but it's not
a simple Mendelian inheritance sort of issue.

I'm sure the real eye professionals here can tell you more.

Kay

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Don W - 20 Oct 2007 02:42 GMT

> -- Talk to your doctor about AREDS.

And you may ask him the level of zinc he thinks "is right for you". AREDS
has 80mg, but zinc lately has come under fire since it was found to be a
component of drusen. A precursor to ARMD.

Don W.

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Dr Judy - 20 Oct 2007 02:04 GMT

On Oct 18, 2:53 pm, fuqu...@hotmail.com wrote:

> My grandfather suffers from macular degeneration and it has
> practically robbed him of all vision. He can make out objects but
> that is it. If I stand directly in front of him he would not know
> that it was me. Me question is does anyone know about any good
> preventative tips that I can take now to help me avoid this disease
> when I get older? Also, is this disease and inherited disease?

There may be an inherited component to AMD, but it is not strong.

The major risk for getting AMD is age which you cannot do anything
about. The second biggest risk factor is smoking; smokers have about
4X greater risk so don't start smoking and quit if you already smoke.
A diet high in fruits and veggies, especially brightly coloured (red,
orange, yellow, blue) ones and dark green leafy veggies (kale,
spinach, collards) and a diet that includes fish at least twice a week
is protective.

Avoiding UV light (sunglasses, hat) and treating vascular disease
(heart disease, diabetes, hypertension) will also help.

Dr Judy

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