How
can nutritional support and lifestyle changes
help Macular Degeneration?
Macular Degeneration is the leading
cause of central vision loss for people over
the age of 55 in the United States.
  1
in 6 Americans
between the ages 55-64 will be affected, increasing
to 1 in 4 aged 64-74. For the elderly, 1
in 3 over the age of 75 suffers from Macular
Degeneration. With our population
living longer and longer it is estimated that
over 3 million Americans by 2020 will have
Age Related Macular Degeneration. By then
each of us will know someone that has lost
their central vision and became vision impaired
because of the disease. Macular Degeneration
is a medical condition that causes degeneration
of the central part of the retina called the
macula. The two basic types of Age Related
Macular Degeneration are Wet ARMD (neovascular,
which means abnormal growth of new blood vessels
within the eye) and Dry ARMD (non-neovascular).
The dry form of Macular Degeneration is the
most common type with around 85%-90% of sufferers
having the dry form. The wet form of Macular
Degeneration is the most visually devastating
and can occur very rapidly. The dry form of
ARMD can slowly cause serious distortion or
loss of central vision and can turn into the
wet form of ARMD. Some people may have an
increased risk of developing Macular Degeneration
because of their genetic makeup. However,
most cases of Macular Degeneration are probably
related to a combination of genetic and environmental
factors.  Ongoing
research in the area of Macular Degeneration
looks very promising. The evolving therapies
Optometrists and Ophthalmologists have at
their fingertips to help patients with Macular
Degeneration are very exciting. These new
therapies may halt or even cure forms of Macular
Degeneration. We may even be able to return
functional vision to many of these patients.
Currently there are no FDA approved surgical
or medical treatments for the dry form of
Macular Degeneration.
What
can I do to decrease my risk of going blind
from Macular Degeneration?
 Nutritional
therapy and lifestyle changes have
proven to be extremely valuable at helping
to prevent the dry form of Macular Degeneration
from progressing to more advanced stages.
I have personally seen thousands of patients
with Macular Degeneration in clinical practice
for over 15 years. I have seen the positive
benefits that patients can realistically obtain
thru nutritional therapy and lifestyle changes.
Many patients have been referred to our centers
in Florida for low vision rehabilitation with
almost no hope, and have decreased their dependence
on low vision devices thru proper nutritional
guidance and lifestyle adjustments. The handpicked
team of Doctors at the Lange Eye Care and
Associates locations and The Lange Eye Institute
in central and north central Florida has extensively
used proper diet, nutrition and lifestyle
changes to benefit the patient with Macular
Degeneration. We have seen some incredible
improvements in vision as well as overall
health in these patients. It is a normal part
of our comprehensive examination to discuss
and educate these options with each patient.
I will go over a list of things that we discuss
with our patients that have been found to
help any of several forms of Macular Degeneration.
This list was compiled based on solid scientific
evidence reported in related literature and
from positive results we have seen clinically
in a very large Macular Degeneration practice.
1.  Follow
a low fat diet (decrease saturated
fats and trans fatty acids) eat more chicken,
turkey, cold water fish and soy products like
Gardenburgers (a popular vegetarian meat substitute,
highly recommended), and tofu. Eat less red
meat, whole milk and cheese. Eat the breast
meat of chicken and turkey from free roaming
organically raised sources (if possible),
and prepare without deep frying—broiling,
boiling or baking is healthier. Be careful
when eating fish because many large fish have
toxic levels of mercury, lead and PCBs (PCBs
are persistent organic pollutants, banned
since 1977, that entered the environment through
both original use and later disposal). Eat
small fish like sardines, anchovies and herring.
Try to avoid farm raised fish and eat wild
fish especially wild Alaskan salmon.
2.  Consume
more dark green leafy vegetables
such as spinach, collards, and kale (preferably
organically grown). Carefully steam, boil
or simmer these in olive oil. Gentle cooking
helps to break down the cell wall releasing
the bioavailability of the greens. Juicing
is also a good way of getting these nutrients.
Lutein is abundant in dark green leafy vegetables
and has been shown to potentially help slow
down the devastating properties of Macular
Degeneration. If you are taking a blood thinner
like Coumadin consult with your physician
prior to consuming more dark green leafy vegetables.
3.  Eat
more orange bell peppers (preferably
organically grown), gently cooked or raw.
Orange bell peppers are very high in Zeaxanthin.
Scientists believe this nutrient when combined
with Lutein helps filter out dangerous HEV
light (blue light) and may help maintain macular
health. Sautee orange peppers and spinach
together for good macular health.
4.  Consume
more darkly pigmented berries (preferably
organically grown). Studies indicate that
eating more dark berries like blueberries
and black berries may help preserve macular
functioning. If you are a diabetic consult
with your physician prior to eating more fruits.
5. Increase
intake of omega 3 fatty acids by
taking micro distilled fish oil. Due to the
large amount of contaminants in fish, micro
or molecularly distilled fish oil may be a
better option than eating the fish.
6. Decrease
intake of salt. New studies may indicate
that decreasing salt intake may decrease deposits
of waste products called drusen in Macular
Degeneration.
7. Wear blue
blocking sunglasses especially if
you have had cataract surgery. There is some
strong science that indicates blocking the
high energy visible spectrum (400nm-500nm),
the "blue light", may help prevent
damage to the macula, the area of the eye
that is responsible for central vision. Yellow,
amber and orange colored lenses are good at
blocking the blue light. Wear them anytime
you are outdoors during daylight. I recommend
polarized blue blockers while in the sun.
Non-polarized lenses are better while indoors
or on cloudy and overcast days.
8.
 NO
SMOKING! If you do smoke try to quit.
Smoking lowers your serum antioxidant levels
in your blood and thus causes a nutritional
deficiency at the cellular level. Second hand
smoke is just as bad. Smokers increase their
risk dramatically of developing the more advanced
stages of Macular Degeneration. If you smoke
be sure you do NOT take high levels of the
supplement called beta carotene.
9. Do cardiovascular
exercises 20-30 minutes 5 times a
week (discuss this with your physician first).
Studies indicate that patients that did cardiovascular
exercise (treadmill, stationary bike, elliptical,
walking, jogging, swimming etc.) were less
likely to develop Macular Degeneration.
10. If you are
overweight, LOSE WEIGHT! Overweight
people are twice as likely
to develop Macular Degeneration.
11. Control
systemic health problems such as
High Blood Pressure, Diabetes and elevated
Cholesterol.
 12.
Choose red wine and green tea!
A new body of science may indicate that drinking
red wine in moderation, sipping green tea,
eating more soy products and cooking with
curry may have some positive impact on Macular
Degeneration, cataracts and inflammatory diseases
in the eye.
13. Take a good
nutritional supplement based on the
latest scientific data, preferably one that
does not have any artificial dyes and synthetic
nutrients. Be careful of supplements that
have only "window dressing" amounts
of specific nutrients. Many vitamin companies
will add tiny amounts of popular nutrients
just to be able to put it on the label. These
small amounts may have no nutritional value.
Patients must also be extremely careful not
to take too many supplements as well. Vitamins
can build up toxic levels, especially the
fat soluble forms. The leading company that
takes all of the current science into consideration
in the development of their supplements is
 Fortifeye®
Vitamins. These products are all natural with
no dyes. They provide therapeutic levels of
nutrients and no window dressing. The Fortifeye
Vitamins mission is stated as promoting proper
vision and whole body health with the right
ingredients at the right levels. I recommend
to all of my patients the multivitamin Fortifeye™
Complete which is a combination
of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, enzymes,
whole foods and omega 3 essential fatty acids
designed to lay a strong foundation for eye
and total body health. If the patient has
Macular Degeneration, I recommend taking one
pill from the  Fortifeye™
Macular Defense formula in addition
to Fortifeye™
Complete. This is a nutritional
system when the two are combined to help prevent
any further vision loss from Macular Degeneration.
I
have seen many patients in my clinical practice
improve, some quite dramatically while taking
these supplements. Many doctors throughout
the country are now recommending Fortifeye™
Complete and Fortifeye™ Macular
Defense to their patients with Macular
Degeneration. We trust the good people at
Fortifeye to stay abreast of the most current
science in regards to nutritional supplementation
for the eye and body. Fortifeye vitamins for
Macular Degeneration and total body health
are constantly evolving.
|
|
Dr.
Michael P. Lange
Board Certified Optometric Physician |
|
So you can
see, it is a rather lengthy and detailed process
when helping these patients to overcome Macular
Degeneration. If patients would only do these
13 things religiously I feel we would see
much less vision loss from Macular Degeneration
and have a much healthier society. Remember
there is no miracle cure for Macular Degeneration.
However if you implement the 13 steps I outlined,
you will decrease your risk of going blind
from Macular Degeneration. I see the benefits
patients receive daily in our clinical practice.
Dr.
Michael P. Lange
Board Certified Optometric Physician
Lange Eye Care and Associates
The Lange Eye Institute
(Located in Central/North Central Florida)
www.LangeEyeCare.com
May 9, 2007 |
