Red Hot Mamas In Charge of Change.
By: Red Hot Mamas
Published: April 5, 2018
Did you know that women are at higher risk than men for most eye diseases? Did you know that Women are at a higher risk for vision loss from such diseases as cataracts, macular degeneration and glaucoma? Did you know that one in four women have not had an eye exam in the last two years? Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has designated April as Women’s Eye Health and Safety Month in an effort to educate women about the steps they can take today to help preserve vision in the future.
Eye health Statistics– Provided by the American Academy of Opthamology
Cataracts
Cataracts affect more than 24.4 million Americans age 40 and older. By age 75, approximately half of all Americans have cataracts
Glaucoma
Glaucoma affects more than 2.7 million Americans age 40 and older
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
Nearly 2.1 million Americans age 50 and older have late AMD, the stage that can lead to severe vision impairment. In 2010, 9.1 million Americans had early AMD. By age 80, one in ten Americans has late AMD, which is more common in women than in men
Diabetic retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy affects nearly 7.7 million Americans age 40 and older.
The number of people in the United States with diabetes is increasing. More than 29 million Americans have diabetes. About 27% of those with diabetes—8.1 million Americans—do not know they have the disease. Diabetes affects 12.3% of adults age 20 and older.
Dry Eye
The prevalence of dry eye syndrome increases with age. An estimated 3.2 million women age 50 and over and 1.68 million men age 50 and over are affected by dry eye syndrome
If you are a woman please take good care of your vision. The following checklist, provided by Preventblindness.org, is helpful to see if you are at risk for age related disease.
