To keep your perception sharp, you need two key things: lutein and zeaxanthin, which sound like villains but aren't. Macular tissue-the clump of photoreceptors on each retina-degenerates faster than the rest of the eye, and as it does, "you no longer see clearly, so you lose the ability to read and to drive", says Steve Pratt, M.D., author of SuperFoods Rx. "There is a big smudge in the center of everything".

Researchers at Heinrich Heine University in Germany found that lutein and zeaxanthin help filter blue light, which may wreck macular tissue. "People with high levels of these two phytonutrients are at lower risk of both macular degeneration and cataracts", Dr. Pratt says.

Dr. Pratt recommends 12 milligrams (mg) a day of the two nutrients combined, or 1/2 to 3/4 cup of cooked spinach, one of the best sources. Cooking concentrates the greens and their powers.

Sophisticated Participants Win Valuable Prizes

Architecturals.net Weekly Contest

Question from : Roger Mathews

Dear doctor is there anything new on the market for chronic lid redness, or infection?

Dr. Webber:

Use diluted baby shampoo and a Q tip to clean the lid margins followed by warm compresses for 2-3 weeks.

Question from : Mike Wick

Hello, I just have a question regarding what I believe is floaters in my vision. For the past 3 days straight and constantly, I have been seeing clear spots and wavy lines in my vision that has not gone away. Everytime I look around, from side to side and up and down for example, those lines and circles follow my sight path. Obviously this is not normal, but is it serious?? 84 years of age.

Dr. Webber:

They sound like floaters, ocular debris, but may be an indication of a retinal hole or tear. See your eye doctor asap for a dilated eye exam to rule them out.

    AMBLYOPIA or "lazy eyes" occurs when one or both eyes do not develop normal vision during childhood. If undetected or left untreated, poor vision irreversibly persists into adulthood.

There are three major causes of a lazy eye or amblyopia. These are any form of eye misalignment (crossed-eyes or wandering eyes), poor or unequal focus due to a refractive error (nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism), or any eye disorder that can obscure vision such as a congenital or a childhood cataract.

According to the Philippine Academy of Ophthalmology (PAO), normal visual development begins at birth and extends until the child reaches around eight years. If any of the above-mentioned conditions exists during this period, amblyopia may develop.

More Information

• Fedora
• Havana
• Optimo
• and more.

    When contact lenses aren't popping out and going missing, they're staying put and incubating bacteria. But a new study shows that silicone hydrogel contact lenses best preventing nasty eye infection. British researchers interviewed 118 contacts wearers about what type of lenses they wore, then took cultures of their corneas. Silicone hydrogel lens wearers had the fewest infections, because their lenses transmit oxygen better, halting bacterial growth.

   The eye of a human can distinguish 500 shades of the gray.

VisionUpdate® is a registered trademark of
VisionUpdate Inc., all rights reserved.