How can Diabetes affect your vision?

Diabetes.  We probably all have our own reaction to this disease and know at least something about its effects – it is a disease that affects the body’s ability to produce or use insulin effectively to control blood sugar (glucose) levels. But did you know that diabetes also can have devastating effects on your eyes and vision?  Too much glucose in the blood for a long time can cause damage in many parts of the body, including the heart, kidneys, blood vessels and the small blood vessels in the eyes.  South Georgia Eye Partners encourages everyone to have annual eye exams, but for those patients with diabetes – these yearly exams can be critical in preventing vision loss.

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When the blood vessels in the eye’s retina (the light sensitive tissue lining the back of the eye) swell, leak or close off completely — or if abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina — it is called diabetic retinopathy.

Something to remember: diabetes can cause vision in your eyes to change even if you do not have retinopathy. If your blood sugar levels change quickly, it can affect the shape of your eye’s lens, causing blurry vision, which goes back to normal after your blood sugar stabilizes.

Did you know there is also a link between diabetes and cataracts? Permanent blurring of  vision due to cataracts can also result from changes to the lens due to excess blood sugar. Cataract surgery may be necessary to remove lenses that are clouded by the effects of diabetes and replace them with clear intraocular lenses (IOLs) to restore clear vision. Maintaining good control of your blood sugar helps reduce episodes of temporary blurred vision and prevent the permanent clouding of the lens that would require surgery to correct.