Cataracts

Cataracts was once thought to be the ever-certain cause of blindness in the United States. But this situation has vastly improved. Cataracts can be removed easily and painlessly. After cataract removal, an IOL or intraocular lens can be inserted into the eye and positioned on the same fibers which held the natural lens prior to the implant. The clouding of the natural lens is now better understood than it once was.

Blood circulates through your body’s arteries and veins, and carries away your body’s dead-cell material. The lens is a different matter, and it sits within a capsule. The lens is inside the eyeball, a completely sealed structure. While the lens is developing in utero, the lens nutrients are supplied by an artery and a vein called the hyaloid system. When the lens is fully developed, the cord to the lens detaches. The mature lens doesn’t have a direct blood supply and its cells must receive fluid and nutrients through osmosis. Like all organs of the body, the lens must continue to grow and develop.

Cataract

After the lens has been around for 40 years or more, the cells of the lens start to become dehydrated and less flexible than they used to be. By then, the total volume of the lens might have increased significantly and experienced changes. That’s when the center of the lens becomes opaque, the signal that we call a cataract.

Some cataracts become darker brown and others are milky white. Cataracts are typically affiliated with the process of aging, but they can develop at any point during your life. Cataracts should only be removed if they’re going to interfere with your eyesight. It’s not a disease that can spread, but it’s a nuisance.

Cataract Surgery

You can have cataract surgery, if you start to lose your eyesight, and it’s recommended. But cataracts can be prevented. There are vaccinations you can get that can prevent the likelihood that you’ll get infectious diseases like cataracts. If you take antioxidants like vitamins E and C and aspirin, cataract growth can be slowed. Also, avoid your exposure to ultraviolet radiation and your cataracts will be discouraged from growing. You can also get prescription glasses that can be coated with UV 400 films. There are several ways cataracts can be removed from your eyes. Some eye doctors remove the entire lens in the capsule, then a special enzyme is injected into the cornea which dissolves the ligaments that hold the lens in place.