June is Cataract Awareness Month
Happy June!
June is Cataract Awareness Month!
As the weather finally starts to feel like summer and the sun is out, we are reminded that June is cataract awareness month!
Cataract is the clouding of the lens inside our eyes that overtime can impact the quality of our vision - creating glare and halos at night and in time affecting our vision overall. It is the cause of 1/3 of the cases of blindness throughout the world.
This eye condition affects about 20.5 million Americans in the U.S. There are great surgical options for patients who have vision impairing cataracts.
As in all diseases - prevention is the BEST way to approach cataracts. Although cataract formation is considered an aging change, there are key things we can each do to slow down the formation and to protect our vision!
Here are some tips from our team of doctors:
Protect your eyes from UV and high energy visible light (blue light) - wear a QUALITY pair of sunglasses or lenses with UV protection when you are outdoors!
Eat a phyoto-nutrient rich diet! "PHYTO" nutrients - can help us "FIGHT" off the oxidation that is the process in which cataracts are formed! These nutrients are found in green leafy vegetables and fruits! If you aren't eating enough - take a quality supplement that has them! We can help you with this during your visit with one of our doctors!
Stop smoking - the chemicals in smoking causes oxidation throughout our body! Our eyes are affected by this!
Take good care of your systemic health - diabetes can speed up cataract formation... so take care of your health to give yourself the BEST opportunities for the healthiest eyes!
Schedule your annual eye health exams - our team is here to care for your VISION FOR LIFE!
Other happenings in our Practice: Special Olympics - Opening Eyes Event Many of you may know - our practice is involved in efforts to care for athletes of the Special Olympics and persons with intellectual disabilities.
Dr. Heidi Pham-Murphy serves as the Clinic Director for Special Olympics - Opening Eyes Program in Northern California. Along with her Dr. Thomas Murphy and our amazing team of staff volunteer to care for these amazing athletes!
Our big event was on Saturday, June 22, 2019 - the Summer Games. This event is the Northern California Championship Games where the athletes will compete in Track & Field, Tennis, Swimming and Bocce Ball!
We opened up our clinic at the UCD Arc Pavilion where Dr. Pham-Murphy, Dr. Murphy and Dr. Huynh along with our team of staff and volunteers will be serving up eyecare, eyewear and sports goggles to the athletes! You can follow our journey on our facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/EyeDesignsOpt/ https://www.facebook.com/VisionsOptometry/ https://www.facebook.com/openingeyes.sonc/?modal=admin_todo_tour
Thank you for reading and thank you for entrusting us with your eyecare!
We are here to care for your Vision for Life!
Sincerely,
Dr. Heidi Pham-Murphy