Cataracts and Vitamin supplements, is there any possible way that vitamins and minerals could help in reducing your risk of getting cataracts

Cataracts and Vitamin supplements, is there any possible way that vitamins and minerals could help in reducing your risk of getting cataracts. The simple answer is yes. And with over 300 prescribed medications being contributors to this condition, it makes preventive steps even that much more important. 

Your eyes are your vessel to everything you do in life, and protecting this vessel may be the most important thing you can do for yourself.

There are always medical opinions that will say that supplements have no benefit on any type of condition, and remember it took the medical community over 200 years to finally admit that Beriberi was caused by a thiamine deficiency.

Vitamins A, C E, and the minerals zinc, selenium, and lutein, one of the 600 known carotenoids, are all critical in not only helping in the prevention of cataracts, but also assisting in the prevention AMD, or age related macular degeneration, another progressive eye condition.

Cataracts are a very common problem that is mostly associated with people over 40 years of age and is estimated to affect over 20 million Americans and millions of people world wide. And the aging process progresses, the risk becomes even higher and the need for these nutrients becomes even more important either from the food that we eat or in the form of supplements.

Statistics have also shown that the risk of developing cataracts is higher in women than in men, and also higher with in the African American as well as the Hispanic populations.

However, age is not the only contributing factor in developing cataracts; sunlight, especially UV sunlight, dehydration, alcohol, heredity, smoking and second hand smoke are also major contributors to this condition.

Obesity and high sugar intake, Diabetes, as well as antacids are also known contributors, as well as over 300 prescribed medications that can speed up the formation of cataracts. As we all get older, we naturally will take more prescribed medications, all more reasons to eat properly and supplement with nutrients.

There are three types of cataracts, and although they all share some basic symptoms, they also may have different symptoms.  Although most all cataracts are age related, there are different types of cataracts including congenital, secondary, and traumatic cataracts.

Congenital cataracts are where babies are born with the condition, which may or may not affect vision, secondary cataracts usually develops from medical condition such as diabetes, prescribed medications, steroids, or long term exposure to sunlight, and traumatic cataracts may develop right after an injury to the eye or, in some cases, several years after an injury.

In the early development stages of this condition, cataracts may have no affect or very little affect on vision. Symptoms will soon appear, however, and the first signs will be cloudy or double vision, images that take on a yellowish tint, and reading will become difficult as contrasting between letters is diminished.

As the condition advances, sensitivity to light increases, and driving at night may become especially difficult. In the most advanced cases, the pupil, which is normally black, becomes yellowish or milky, and you may be only able to distinguish light from dark.

So how exactly do vitamins and nutrients help in preventing cataracts, or at least diminishing the affects?

Certain vitamins play a very significant role in our bodies as antioxidants, and antioxidants. Vitamins C, E, and Riboflavin, all play roles in our body in preserving the levels of glutathione, an enzyme that protects the eye from oxidation. Glutathione is also believed to help protect the eyes against radiation and the affects of sunlight.

Vitamin A palmitate, which is a form of vitamin A, is absolutely essential fro proper vision; In fact, a deficiency of this vitamin can very easily lead to night blindness. Unlike vitamin A acetate, which is what is used in vitamin A pills, this form of vitamin A is a spray form commonly used in foods, and is a combination of retinol, which is pure vitamin A, and palmitic acid.

Vitamin E works in cohesion with Vitamin A, and is essential for the development of the retina and also helps protect the eyes from free radical damage, such as second hand smoke, that are associated with both cataracts as well as macular degeneration.

Vitamin B2, Riboflavin, is also very important to your eyes. It helps to strengthen the corneas through a process known as collagen cross linking. This process has been approved by the FDA for treatment of progressive eye diseases such as keratonconus and corneal ectasia, so it is only natural to also be vey effective in preventing cataracts.

The mineral selenium is effective as it helps your body absorb vitamin E, and chromium plays a critical role of preserving the strength of smaller blood vessels, especially those found in the eyes and around the retina. Chromium deficiency is also one of the major causes of diabetes, which is a major cause of cataracts.

Zinc, another mineral, plays an extremely important role as it helps to absorb and convert vitamin A, considered the most important vitamin to the eyes, and also acts as an enzyme in reducing free radicals. It has also been proven to be very effective in preventing night blindness.

Lutein, however, may be the most important nutrient, and has only recently been shown to be a significant player in healthy eye. Lutein and beta-carotene are antioxidants and help the eyes in several ways, including regulating eye cellular growth and health, as well as ridding the body of extra cellular growth, especially important in both cataracts as well as macular denegation. 

Our eyes are our vessels to life, and protecting them against cataracts, especially as we age, may be one of the most important things you can do for yourself.

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