Macular Degeneration what is it, and when should I start worrying about it?

First things first: Macular Degeneration is a build-up of byproducts in the retina at the back of the eye, leading to vision loss. Macular Degeneration affects “straight ahead,” or detailed, vision and can run in families.

Put another way, the retina uses a lot of energy to see the world around us, and over time some of the leftovers from all of that energy usage can accumulate and cause vision problems. (I had a colleague once refer to these leftovers as “retina poop,” which is not a visual that I care to ponder!)

Macular Degeneration is a personal topic of interest for me, since my family has one of the most prominent family-related links to Macular Degeneration that I have ever seen. I started taking eye vitamins in my mid-30s due to changes that I had noticed on my retina.

I became aware of these changes thanks to photos I had taken of the backs of my eyes. These photos are a part of a comprehensive eye exam. Regular eye exams are essential, especially if you have any family history of Macular Degeneration or if you have ever been a smoker.

So what do we do about Macular Degeneration? Most cases are treated with daily vitamins, but not all eye vitamins are created equal! Over the last few decades, several research studies have been done under the umbrella of Age-Related Eye Disease Studies, or AREDS. Shockingly, the AREDS vitamin formulation has toxic levels of zinc (12 times the recommended daily amount!) and, since zinc can deplete copper in our bodies, the AREDS formulation has high levels of copper as well …

For a few years, I searched for vitamin options containing little or no zinc and found good quality options in the Ocuvue and 4Sight vitamins. These vitamins cost about $1 to $1.50 per day. I take one of these vitamins myself daily and also make them available to my patients. If you have questions about Macular Degeneration or your risk of developing it, please contact us at Mid-Modern Eyecare.