It might come as a surprise to many, but cataracts accounts for more than 51% of world blindness. That’s how serious this problem is. The worst part, however, is that we are still running behind in fighting this battle. Although there are people like Dr. John Haines who are doing their bit to educate people, make them aware of the problem and help them reduce this serious with their endeavors, we can do more.

So, in this post we are going to talk about cataract, the early signs to detect it, the causes behind it and how it can be treated. Let us take a look.

Early signs of cataract

The first signs of cataract appear with the blurring of vision. For instance, it might simply feel like your vision is blurred when looking through glass. Colors may not appear as bright or sunlight might seem too bright. People suffering from different types of cataract might face different type of symptoms. Based on the causes, cataract has been categorized into:

– Nuclear cataract, occurring in the nucleus lens
– Cortical cataract, occurring in the lens cortex
– Subscapular cataract, occurring at the back of the lens

What causes cataract?

Human eye functions by focusing light onto the retina. That’s how the image formation in eye occurs. The lens, which is made of protein and water primarily, starts to deteriorate with age as the protein component in it starts to clump together. These clumps are the reason why the person starts to have cloudy eyesight.

Though there have been no clear reasons identified why the structure of proteins in the lens start to change, there have been certain risk factors associated with the rise of this condition. Some of these factors are –

– UV radiation from sun
– Obesity
– Hypertension
– Smoking
– Eye surgery
– High myopia
– Family history

How can we prevent cataract?

Now the most important question here is how we can act to prevent cataract? Well, here’s how –

– Although controversial, there have been studies that show cataract can be slowed by dietary changes and the addition of certain specific nutritional supplements to diet.
– These sources include sunflower seeds, which are rich in vitamin E, leafy vegetables, spinach, almonds, and kale.
– Studies have also shown that foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin C have also reduced the risk of cataract significantly.

The fact of the matter is that cataract is a global problem that is blinding people from all over the world. But thanks to organizations like the Give Me Sight Foundation and Dr. John Haines, we have a beacon of hope that we will overcome the problem and live in a world where no one suffers the effects of cataract. If you want to help out cause with a donation, click here.