November is National Diabetes Awareness Month

As we step into November - a season of gratitude and thanks - we want to express our deep appreciation to you for trusting us with your eyes and giving us the opportunity to provide you with all your eyecare needs. November is also Diabetes Awareness Month and we wanted to share with you some staggering statistics and advice on how to care for our eyes better. In California, over 4 million of us live with diabetes and an additional 10+ million of us struggle with pre-diabetes.  This devastating disease robs us of our vision!  Diabetic retinopathy is the NUMBER 1 cause of vision loss in America!  The rates of diabetic retinopathy is expected to double by 2050! The time to care for our eyes is NOW!  95% of blindness from diabetic eye disease is preventable with early detection and treatment! Here's our advice down to easy steps for all of us:

1. Get your EYE EXAM at least once a year! 

According to the CDC: Of the estimated 61 million US adults at high risk for vision loss, only half visited an eye doctor in the past 12 months. Regular eye care can have a life-changing impact on preserving the vision of millions of people.  

2. Take a BRISK walk everyday!  

For those of us with Diabetes: This helps to control blood glucose levels!

For those of us with Pre-diabetes: A 30 minute walk can decrease our risk of converting over to diabetes by 58%

3. Get our routine physicals - knowing is the first step in effecting our outcomes and caring for our health!

Diabetes increases our risk of other eye diseases such as:

Glaucoma

Cataracts

Dry Eyes

Macular Deneration

When you visit with one of our doctors - understand that we are here to share our knowledge and deliver to you the best advice on how to care for your Vision for Life! Thank you for reading!  And thank you for entrusting us with your eyecare.

Sincerely,

Dr. Heidi Pham-Murphy and Our entire eyecare team!