Macular Degeneration

Today I had the opportunity to research macular degeneration. Macular Degeneration is caused by the deterioration of the part of the retina that records the images we see and sends them via the optic nerve to the brain. This part of the retina, the macula is responsible for focusing our vision and controls our ability to read, drive a car, or even see objects in fine detail. Macular degeneration comes in stages. It may at first not even affect our vision, but as time goes on the vision can become blurred. The final stage of macular degeneration is a total loss of vision, or blindness. This eye disease is most likely to occur in people ages 55 or older. Having family history of macular degeneration increases your risk of having this eye condition as well. Smoking can have a large affect on this condition, as someone who smokes has double the risk of having this disease. Their is currently no cure for this condition, but can be helped with a healthy diet, exercise and avoiding ultraviolet rays. This condition is the leading cause of vision loss in the world. More than 10 million Americans have this condition, which is more than cataracts and glaucoma combined. Researching this eye condition has been very insightful and I'm glad I could learn about this topic.