Blindness Prevention

[Ms. Kathy]

Study: Diet change can prevent blindness
Source link: www.upi.com/ConsumerHealthDaily/view.php?StoryID=20051228-070454-2019r
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Eating food high in certain vitamins can help stave off eye degeneration that leads to blindness, a new study shows.

Researchers at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands, found patients consuming more than recommended quantities of food with high levels of beta carotene, vitamins C and E and zinc reduce the risk of getting age-related macular degeneration.

The disorder, which affects 1.5 million Americans, damages the retina and is the most common cause of irreversible blindness.

The study calls for further research but recommends older people change their diet to reduce the risk of blindness.

The study was published in the Dec. 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

[Ms. Kathy]

Howard B. Schiffer Honored With Global Humanitarian Award

Source:http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/3/prweb359012.htm

Vitamin Angel Alliance President, Howard B.Schiffer was honored by Vivekanand Ashram with their Global Humanitarian Award for making a ‘valuable contribution towards making a difference in the lives of millions of children by (the) prevention of childhood blindness in India’.

Santa Barbara, CA (PR WEB) March 29, 2006 – Vitamin Angel Alliance President, Howard B.Schiffer was honored by Vivekanand Ashram with their Global Humanitarian Award for making a ‘valuable contribution towards making a difference in the lives of millions of children by (the) prevention of childhood blindness in India’.

Vitamin Angels is now reaching 1 million children, lactating mothers and babies in India to prevent Vitamin A Deficiency childhood blindness. The ‘Vitamin A / Childhood Prevention Campaign sponsored by Johnson & Johnson is now in its third year. The program also combats parasitic worms and helps educate people about the importance of basic nutrition, sanitation and hygiene.

“We share this award with all of our partners in India, other NGO’s (non government organizations), health care workers, and mothers and grandmothers, who are working tirelessly and selflessly every day in the villages to make sure that health care and basic nutrition is a right and not a privilege for every person. Vitamin Angel’s commitment is to support their efforts to make this world a healthier place.” said Howard B. Schiffer, Vitamin Angel Alliance, President. He continued; “We’re thrilled to be giving so many children the chance to live productive lives”.

Vitamin Angel Alliance is a non-profit, non-sectarian organization dedicated to providing basic nutrition and fighting vitamin A deficiency childhood blindness and other vitamin deficiency diseases around the world since 1994. Last year Vitamin Angels donated over 100 million supplements to people in need in 40 countries around the world.

“On behalf of the millions of children we serve, we thank Vivekanand for recognizing the importance of this humanitarian work” said Schiffer, “Our hope is that many other companies in the Natural Products and Pharmaceutical industries will join us to achieve our goal of stopping vitamin A deficiency childhood blindness around the globe by 2020.”

[Ms. Kathy]

Taking Vision For Granted Can Cost You
Source: www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/13/earlyshow/contributors/emilysenay/main1496410.shtml

NEW YORK, April 13, 2006
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(CBS) Many retailers nationwide are pulling Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoistureLoc contact lens solution off store shelves after federal health officials linked it to a dangerous eye fungus.

The Early Show medical correspondent Dr. Emily Senay says the concern serves as a reminder that we all have to be vigilant about our vision.

She stresses the need to see a doctor if you experience any symptoms of infection or disease. Signs of infection can include redness, itching, and swelling and irritation around the eye or eyelid. But people also need to be alert to any loss of vision or blurred vision, light flashes, and eye pain.

Diseases that cause blindness, such as glaucoma and diabetes, can be treated more effectively the sooner they are diagnosed and managed. There have been major medical advances for diseases that threaten vision, such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts, Senay notes.

All adults over the age of 20 should have a regular eye exam, including a test for glaucoma, every two years until age 64, then every year thereafter, Senay observes.

Glaucoma often develops slowly over time, gradually robbing people of peripheral vision before they notice they have a problem. If left untreated, it can eventually cause blindness.

Glaucoma damages vision when pressure in the liquid that circulates in the open spaces within the eye puts pressure on the optic nerve, which carries information from the eye to the brain. The most common form of glaucoma involves a gradual buildup of eye pressure that may not have any symptoms, such as vision loss or pain, until it reaches an advanced stage, Senay explains.

Luckily, she adds, there is a quick and easy screening test to measure eye pressure that can catch glaucoma early on. Medications and laser surgery can effectively manage the disease.

Diet counts for eye health, too, Senay points out.

Eating a diet low in fat and cholesterol has been shown to be good for the eyes. Dark, leafy green vegetables such as spinach, kale, collard greens, Swiss chard and broccoli rabe are very rich in the antioxidant lutein, which is thought to support eye health. Egg yolks are also a good source of eye-friendly antioxidants. Studies have found that Omega 3 fatty acids found in certain types of fish are valuable as well.

The glare of a computer or TV can tire the eyes, Senay says, so it's important to keep other lights on around the room to make it easier on the eyes. An anti-glare screen for your computer can also help. The other problem that can result from too much computer or TV time is dry-eye. Concentrating hard on the screen can reduce the frequency of blinking, which is the body's natural way of spreading moisture across the surface of the eye. Try to blink on purpose, or periodically look away from the screen. Eye drops can also be used.

Constant exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun can also damage the eyes, Senay says, so it's important to wear sunglasses with UVA and UVB protection. Protect your eyes from injury by wearing safety glasses and protective goggles while playing sports or working with hazardous materials.

[Ms. Kathy]

Smoking doubles eye disorder risk in old age
Saturday April 15, 2006 (0252 PST)
This article was in the "PaK Tribune" at www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=140670


ISLAMABAD: People who smoke have double the risk of suffering from a degenerative eye disorder that is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly, researchers said on Thursday.
A study of more than 4,000 Britons aged 75 years and older showed that those who smoke were twice as likely to have age related macular degeneration (AMD) as those who didn’t.

"Smoking is associated with a twofold increased risk of developing AMD," said Professor Astrid Fletcher, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, in a study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

AMD is an illness that blurs the central vision. It affects the macula, or part of the eye that sees fine detail. In the United States alone it afflicts about 10 million to 15 million people. The risk of suffering from the illness increases with age.

Fletcher and her colleagues questioned people in the study about their smoking habits, alcohol consumption and cardiovascular disease.

People who had stopped smoking more than 20 years earlier had no increased risk developing the illness. Based on the findings, the researchers estimate that smoking is likely to have been linked to up to 30,000 cases of the disease in Britain.

"An increased risk of AMD, which is the most commonly occurring cause of blindness in the United Kingdom, is yet another reason for people to stop smoking and governments to develop public health campaigns against this hazard," Fletcher added in the study.

[Ms. Kathy]

River blindness drops in Equatorial Guinea
BARCELONA, Spain, July 31 (UPI) -- River blindness, a disease transmitted through the bite of the black fly and prevalent in Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea, has dropped by 38 percent.

Dr. Jordi Mas of the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona and Dr. Carlos Ascaso of the Institut d'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi i Sunyer assessed the impact of eight-year vertical distribution of Ivermectin, the only treatment available against onchocerciasis, among the rural population of 12 communities.

The study, published in Tropical Medicine and Internacional Health, found river blindness, or onchocerciasis, tracked prevalence before treatment at 74.5 percent and after treatment at 38.4 percent.

Onchocerciasis is caused by the worm Onchocerca volvulus and is transmitted through the bite of the black fly, Simulium. Environmental conditions such as humidity, rapid water rivers and the altitude of Bioko favor the development of this pathology, since this is the habitat of the fly acting as a vector.

The parasite, in larval form, is transferred to humans when the fly bites humans to obtain blood.

Source: www.upi.com/ConsumerHealthDaily/view.php?StoryID=20060731-053513-1372r

[Ms. Kathy]

EYESI Simulater Helps Doctors Mimic Eye Surgery
Source:http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=19&aid=61431#
July 31, 2006

Eye surgery is reaching new horizons. Experts say an innovation in medical training could improve the outcome in more optical operations. NY1 Health & Fitness Reporter Kafi Drexel filed the following report.

Eye surgery, usually to prevent blindness, is one of the most delicate operations doctors can perform.

"This is microsurgery, so any type of movement you make within the eye can have major complications," says Dr. Shantan Reddy, Chief Resident, NYU Medical School.

But the latest in virtual reality is helping doctors train for the operating room. NYU School of Medicine, is one of the first to start preparing doctors for surgery using the EYESI Surgical Simulator.

It's a partnership with the nonprofit group Orbis International, an organization dedicated to preventing avoidable blindness world-wide.

The EYESI simulator, made by German company VRMagic Technology Group, mimics the feel of real eye surgery. And while the virtual surgery isn't the real thing, doctors are saying it's a major improvement over traditional methods.

"In this particular type of surgery, a lot of the teaching is done on animal eyes – pig eyes and cow eyes – prior to going into the operating room," says Dr. Lisa Park, NYU School of Medicine. "And those do not obviously, accurately simulate what goes on in the human eye."

The simulator allows residents to repeat surgeries over and over again, and see how they scored on a scale of zero to 100. Not only do they say it's a good learning tool, but they say it's also helping to boost confidence levels for residents heading into the operating room for the first time.

"There are going to be many differences between the simulator and actually operating on an eye, but what the simulator allows you to do is take a few of the basic principles and turn them into reflexes, so when the time comes to do the surgery, you can focus on the unique aspects," says Dr. Nathan Radcliffe, Chief Resident, NYU Medical School.

Not only are doctors getting plenty of training using the simulator, but they're also using it to continue to help make healing more of global effort by helping to train doctors with it in underdeveloped countries.

Once trained with the EYESI simulator these doctors can perform surgeries and exams around the world on board a fully equipped flying hospital funded by ORBIS. And considering that doctors say more than half of all blindness at home and abroad is preventable, its training that could prove to have quite an impact.

- Kafi Drexel

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[Ms. Kathy]

Wild Oats Markets Announce National Fundraiser for Vitamin Angels
Tuesday August 1, 8:00 am ET
Customers Encouraged to Choose Wild Oats Brand Vitamins to Help Eliminate Childhood Blindness in Third World Countries
Source: biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060801/latu037.html?.v=64


BOULDER, Colo., Aug. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wild Oats Markets, Inc. (Nasdaq: OATS - News), a leading national natural and organic foods retailer, today announced that it will donate a portion of sales from each bottle of Wild Oats brand vitamins to Vitamin Angels, a nonprofit organization that provides health education and nutritional supplements to medically underserved communities around the world.


From Aug. 1 through Sept. 30, each time a customer purchases a bottle of Wild Oats brand vitamins, 25 cents will be contributed to Vitamin Angels. By the year 2020, Vitamin Angels hope to eliminate childhood blindness through a systematic distribution of vitamin A to at-risk children around the globe.

"Wild Oats' donation during August and September will cover the cost of administering a year's supply of vitamin A capsules to nutrition programs in poverty stricken communities," said Howard B. Schiffer, founder and president of Vitamin Angels. "Through Wild Oats' generous donation, thousands of at- risk children will receive vitamin A treatments."

Vitamin A plays an integral role in the health and development of children, and is vital to healthy vision, bone growth and boosting the immune system. Health statistics indicate there are approximately 250 million pre-school age children who are sub-clinically vitamin A deficient and that half of those children who do become blind will die each year from opportunistic infections.

"The statistics on childhood blindness are alarming and Wild Oats is proud to support Vitamin Angels," said Perry Odak, president and CEO of Wild Oats Markets. "Our involvement with this global organization reinforces our mission to foster solutions to help children live healthier lives."

Recently, Wild Oats donated $250,000 worth of Wild Oats brand vitamins and supplements though Vitamin Angels to various charitable health care facilities and programs throughout the countries of Liberia and Zambia.

About Wild Oats:

Wild Oats Markets, Inc. is a nationwide chain of natural and organic foods markets in the U.S. and Canada with annual sales of more than $1.1 billion. The Company operates 113 natural foods stores in 24 states and British Columbia, Canada. The Company's markets include: Wild Oats Natural Marketplace, Henry's Farmers Market, Sun Harvest and Capers Community Markets. For more information, please visit www.wildoats.com.

About Vitamin Angels

Vitamin Angels, a non-profit, non-sectarian organization was created in 1994 to fight malnutrition and childhood blindness around the world. Vitamin Angels provide health education and nutritional supplements to individuals, families, and communities that are medically underserved or at risk of a specific condition or illness. Please contact Megan Starks at 805-564-8400 to make a donation to Vitamin Angels. For additional information, please visit www.VitaminAngels.org.

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Source: Wild Oats Markets, Inc.

[Ms. Kathy]

Wednesday, August 2, 2006
News
Kelsey-Sebold promotes child physicals
Source: Katy Times On Line www.katytimes.com/articles/2006/07/28/news/05news.txt

By Debbie Bradley
Times Intern
The earliest years of a child's life are some of the most important in their development and in order to make sure that they grow up healthy, regular visits to their doctor is required.

This was the message that was conveyed at the Kelsey-Seybold Clinicís “How an Annual Physical Could Save Your Child's Life...and Your Life, Too!” which is a part of the clinic's monthly”Healthy Living” series.

“When people make appointments for a physical, they frequently will come in with their child as well and they just want to come and talk about their physical” Dr. Benfard Hicks said.

Before scheduling a physical, parents should be ready to answer any of the questions that might come up as well as making note of anything unusual about the child.

Some things to keep in mind include changes in the childís body, chest pain, changes in bowel habits and skin problems, just to name a few.

During a child's physical, doctors check on several areas to make sure that the child is developing correctly. ºDuring the ear exam, the doctor will check to see if there is an infection or fluid in the ear, the shape of the ear and its location and will check for any pre-auricular tags.

During the eye exam, doctors will check for anidria, which is associated with a Wilms tumor, as well as any leukocoria or strabismus, which are both associated with retinoblastoma.

“If you pick up on a retinoblastoma very very early, you can save that kid's life,” Hicks said.

The doctor will also check the neck's lymph nodes and the thyroid and check the lungs for any breathing problems.

They will check on the heart to see if there are any murmurs, if the rate and rhythm is correct and check on their blood pressure.

The abdomen is checked to make sure that all of the organs are the correct size and that there are not any masses.

The skin is checked for any unusual looking moles while the back of the neck is checked for acanthosis nigricaus, a sign that the child might be developing insulin resistance.

Beyond checking for illnesses and a child's development, Hicks also described the many immunization shots that the children should have before they become an adult. In all, he listed 12 different shots that are now available for children to have.

Seeking proper healthcare doesn't stop after 18, Dr. Chandra Chaudhuri briefly described what adults should be doing as far as physicals go. Adults between the ages of 18 to 39 should have physicals every three years.

Adults between 40 to 49 should have a physical every two years, while those over 50 should have a physical every year.

[Ms. Kathy]

New camera could stop blindness
A Gloucestershire doctor could help save the sight of adults with diabetes or glaucoma after inventing a unique spectral imaging camera.
The camera, invented by Prof Andy McNaughts, is a non-invasive procedure which measures oxygen levels in the back of the retina.

It is being developed for commercial use after a £500,000 grant from the Department of Trade and Industry.

A prototype is already being used at Cheltenham General Hospital.

Prof McNaught, a consultant surgeon at Cheltenham General Hospital, said: "There isn't anything like it at the moment worldwide.

"It will be a welcome piece of equipment for ophthalmologists across the country."

Safe investigation

At present, patients who need the circulation of the eye measured are injected with a fluorescent dye which can cause allergic reactions.

Prof McNaught said the camera provides doctors with "more accurate information and the option to treat the affected eyes quickly, thus ultimately preventing blindness".

The inspiration for the camera, which uses military technology, came after a chance meeting with Dr Andy Harvey, a military scientist.

A consortium including the Department of Trade and Industry, Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and a manufacturer of conventional retinal cameras has now been established.

The initial funding of £80,000 for the project was provided by Gloucestershire Eye Therapy Trust.

Currently more than two million people in the UK are known to have diabetes and 300,000 have glaucoma.





Story from BBC NEWS:
news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/gloucestershire/5222674.stm

Published: 2006/07/27 20:42:34 GMT

© BBC MMVI

[Ms. Kathy]

Date:14/10/2006 URL: www.thehindu.com/2006/10/14/stories/2006101413820300.htm
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Karnataka - Bangalore

How to light up their lives

Sahana Charan

World Health Organisation to focus on preventable blindness this year





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Observations
Lack of support groups and access to health services
Many people not aware that blindness can be prevented
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BANGALORE: For them, life is a blur. Even as World Sight Day is observed on Thursday, those who tread the grey area between total blindness and perfect sight struggle to lead a productive life.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has chosen "Low Vision and Refractive Error" as the theme for this year's World Sight Day. It is focussing on preventable blindness and early detection. People with low vision are often identified as blind and many do not have access to rehabilitation services for their specific needs.

According to the WHO, a low-vision person is one who "has a significant visual handicap and also usable residual vision." The main causes of low vision may be cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy (eye problem caused by diabetes), macular degeneration and genetic diseases.

In 2002, more than 161 million people across the world were visually impaired. Of this, 124 million people had low vision and 37 million were blind. Worldwide, for each blind person, there is an average of 3.4 people with low vision.

Except for the most developed countries, cataract remains the leading cause of blindness in all regions of the world. "Even though many forms of blindness are preventable and low vision problems can be treated, in the rural areas, lack of support groups and access to health services leads to people not being aware that this can be prevented," Subhash M., a visually impaired person, said.

"For example, people in villages may not know that giving leafy green vegetables and fruits may prevent a child from developing blindness. Night blindness, one of the major problems among those with low vision, can be treated with Vitamin A drops. There is a need to disseminate such important information among villagers," he said.

Arun Samprathi, consultant paediatric ophthalmologist, Narayana Nethralaya, said: "A child's eye matures in the first eight years of life and whether the child will develop short sight and long sight is determined in those years. If effective interventions are made early and eye examinations done regularly, problems of low vision and subsequent blindness can be prevented."









© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu

[Ms. Kathy]

Eye tests must for students
Publish Date: Thursday,12 October, 2006, at 11:32 AM Doha Time
www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/printArticle.asp?


Staff Reporter
The Qatar National Committee for the Prevention of Blindness has announced its plan to fight blindness and other eye-related problems as part of its participation in the Vision 2020 programme, on the eve of the International Sight Day, which is marked all over the world today.
At a press conference, Dr Hamad Ahmad al-Qamra, the national co-ordinator of the programme, said there were 27mn people worldwide who suffered from blindness. “Their number would swell to 75mn by the year 2020. At least 75% of these cases can be cured.”
Dr al-Qamra said about 0.8% of the Qatari population suffered from blindness while 2.4% had weak sight.
The government strategy to tackle the problem included making it compulsory for students to undergo eye tests at government hospitals and following it up with annual check-ups at schools. Shortly, a survey will be conducted to learn the reasons for all eye-related problems in Qatar.
Qatar is one of countries participating in the Vision 2020 programme, and the success of this programme depended on the co-operation among the participants, he said.

[Ms. Kathy]

StanChart plans to contribute $10m to fighting blindness
Source: www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=10/17/2006§ion_id=7&newsid=41065&spcl=no
FE Report
10/17/2006

The Standard Chartered Bank has launched the next phase of its 'Seeing is Believing' programme with the aim of making a difference to the lives of 10 million blind people by World Sight Day 2010.
The programme will be delivered through a range of social, medical and community based projects focusing on prevention as well as intervention.
Standard Chartered Bank Group Chief Executive Mervyn Davies said, "Eliminating avoidable blindness doesn't take a miracle. It takes innovation, money, commitment and good governance."
International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness President Gullapalli N Rao said, "We highly value the contribution of Standard Chartered Bank and we are excited to be moving into this new phase of collaboration".
In addition to the $10 million pledged, the bank is offering each member of its 50,000 employees two-day paid voluntary leave to give them the opportunity to work on 'Seeing is Believing' project

[Ms. Kathy]

www.visionconnection.org/Content/Research/PsychosocialandEvaluationResearch/MeasuresandInstruments/FunctionalVisionScreeningQuestionaire.htm

The above link is to a functional vision screening page for older adults.

[Ms. Kathy]

Prevent Blindness America fundraiserOctober 28, 2006 - The campaign to save sight took a spooky twist today in Holland.
It might look like a scary sight but this fright fest was all for a good cause. Prevent Blindness America sponsored today's fundraiser at the Holland Wal-Mart on McCord.

From 10 this morning until 6, people got a chance to participate in a Halloween costume contest, an hourly raffle and help a good cause at the same time.

Prevent Blindness America says that regular eye exams and early detection can prevent nearly half of all blindness, especially in children.

PBA and Wal-Mart stores say their goal is to raise over $1 million for the cause by the end of the year.

Source: 13ABC.com, Toledo, Ohio abclocal.go.com/wtvg/index?id=3263511

[Ms. Kathy]

FDA Warns Against Noncorrective Contact Lenses
Source: ALL HEADLINE NEWS--http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7005329633

October 28, 2006 4:25 p.m. EST


Nicole King - All Headline News Staff Writer
Rockville, MD (AHN) - The FDA is warning against decorative contact lenses. The agency is especially concerned about companies that sell the lenses without a prescription.

FDA officials are concerned that the lenses could cause serious damage. The lenses are called Plano or non corrective lenses and they're worn strictly for looks.

The lenses could cause permanent eye injury that could lead to blindness. Other risks include conjunctivitis (pink eye), corneal ulcers, corneal abrasion and vision impairment. Sharing lenses is particularly dangerous, leading to infections, abrasions, allergic reactions and even blindness.

The lenses are being sold in beauty salons, flea markets, convenience stores and over the Internet. Last year, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act was amended to include all contact lenses under the FDA's control.

The FDA said it would pursue those who sell or distribute the lenses improperly. Any distribution of the lenses without the involvement of an eye care professional will be considered illegal.