This content is written by a patient. The views and opinions expressed are her own and do not necessarily reflect those of any healthcare provider or organization.
American artist Georgia O’Keefe described it as a cloud entering her eyeballs. Award winning British actress Dame Judi Dench says, “You’re looking at another person and there is a piece missing — there is a hole in what you’re looking at …” What these well-known personalities are describing is the visual changes that come with wet AMD.
Approximately 2 million people from all walks of life in the US will learn this year that their dry AMD has converted to wet. Once that happens, severe and permanent vision loss can occur quickly, within days or weeks. In the past, not enough was known about the disease’s progression to help those at risk. Today, however, after decades of research, we can look at two mighty weapons that should be in the arsenal of everyone wanting to slow the progression of dry macular degeneration. Those weapons are Nutrition and Early Catch.
NUTRITION
AREDS:
The science is clear. Eyes are living organs that need to be fortified with nutrients to keep them healthy. The breakthrough AREDS and AREDS2 (Age-Related Eye Disease Study) research done in the early 2000s eventually confirmed the value of carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin. A formula for a capsule with those nutrients and others was developed, and today AMD patients worldwide benefit significantly from taking AREDS 2 supplements.
Kale & Oranges: Good eye nutrition, however, doesn’t end with pills. According to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, kale
and other dark leafy greens are essential to good eye health because they are brimming with lutein and zeaxanthin. Studies have shown that eating kale daily can actually slow the progression of dry macular degeneration. (The Internet is full of delicious kale recipes!) Oranges, too, (including the pith) carry big flavonoid benefits, and there is evidence that eating an orange daily reduces the odds even of developing AMD. Research is underway to study oranges’ impact on slowing AMD progression, but retina specialists aren’t waiting for confirmation. They are already advising patients to eat an orange, with pith, daily.
EARLY CATCH
Prompt treatment matters:
If and when dry AMD progresses to wet, we now know there is urgency in beginning antiangiogenic treatments (injections to stop leakage). Ideally, treatment should begin as early as possible. At this level, one can read, drive a car, and function well in most routine tasks. Changes in vision that go undetected and untreated, however, often result in devastating outcomes. In short, changes must be caught early. Daily monitoring, therefore, is essential.
A Game Changer—The ForeseeHome AMD Monitoring Program provided by the Notal Vision Monitoring Center: In 2009 ForeseeHome monitoring became available widely through prescription. The user no longer had to analyze lines on a grid but instead could click on bumps that appear on a screen. The results of those clicks are analyzed by AI at the Notal Vision Monitoring Center and compared with the user’s baseline. If changes are noted, the user's doctor receives and alert and then they determine the best course of action for the patient.
The AREDS2 HOME Study involved over 1500 participants where the [ForeseeHome] device demonstrated that 87-94% of users maintained 20/40 vision or better at the time of wet AMD detection, compared to only 62% of those who used standard care, such as use of the Amsler grid. Vision at this level is significant because vision that is better than 20/40 allows patients to maintain their usual level of independence.
In other words, there is URGENCY in detecting retina changes, and the ForeseeHome Monitor is invaluable for an “early catch.”
In the 1970s, when Georgia O’Keefe was struggling with AMD, little was known about the importance of nutrition and home monitoring to preserve vision, and we were well in advance of the antiangiogenic treatments we have today. Indeed, we are fortunate to be living now. But all the information and tools available to us because of decades of research have little meaning if we don’t use them.
Taking ARED supplements, eating kale and other dark, leafy greens, as well as an orange daily, and being disciplined about home monitoring are our responsibility and essential to increasing the odds of retaining our vision and the capacity to remain visually independent. Jim Rohn, American entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker, sums it up well: “We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment.”
Doesn’t it seem that the pain of discipline is a small price to pay for our sight?
Jeannie Norris
User of ForeseeHome and member of the Patient Advisory Council
