Diabetes is increasingly in our day and affects many Americans, both young and old. Our  sedentary lifestyle and the abundance of available food has proven to be a deadly combination for our generation since it often leads to diabetes. Many doctors would always remind their patients to eat healthy and exercise but  people in general don’t plan meals ahead for their family and there is very little time for exercise. This is making a lot of people sick with diabetes and even young children are not exempt. Type II diabetes is so common in many American children because of expectant mothers who have not been careful with their diet during pregnancy. In Colorado, Diabetic Retinopathy can be seen by many eye specialist and these doctors can give patients advice on what steps to take to prevent this eye condition.

Now another cause of concern for most physicians is the complications of diabetes that can lead to more serious medical condition if a patient is not carefully monitoring his or her blood sugar. One complication is called diabetic retinopathy - this condition affects the eye and can lead to blindness if not treated. Doctors are also aware that diabetic patients have 90% of chance in developing eye problems like retinopathy and all it takes is time to feel the ravaging effects of high glucose in the blood system.

Diabetic retinopathy usually happens to adults and is caused by the changes in the blood vessels of the retina. Patients with diabetic retinopathy may have swelling or leak in their retinal blood vessels and others have an abnormal growth of blood vessels on the surface of their retina which causes the patient to become blind. Some will not feel any symptoms until the condition has advanced and is already affecting the vision or is already causing pain in the eyes. This condition can be prevented by strictly monitoring the patient’s diet and activities and by managing the insulin dependence of the patient.

Blindness happens when a macular edema occur. The Macula, a part of the retina, swells from the leaking fluid causing blurred vision and may lead to total blindness. This is also true when the new vessels in the retina grow on the surface, they can bleed (hemorrhage) into the eye and blocks vision. The longer a person has diabetes, the greater are his or her chances of developing diabetic retinopathy.

If you are living somewhere in Colorado and you suspect that you have this condition, you can easily put in the search box on the Search Engine “Colorado Diabetic Retinopathy” to look for the nearest eye center where you can go and have your eyes checked and get proper diagnosis. Patients with diabetes need not go blind because of their illnesses; all they need to do is to strictly monitor their diet, medication and blood sugar. It will also help and should be included in “the must do” list to have annual check up.

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