Omaha doctor discusses how to keep our eyes healthy on World Sight Day
Updated: 4:45 PM CDT Oct 10, 2024
MOVING SMOOTHLY. ALL RIGHT. WELL, TODAY IS WORLD SIGHT DAY. IT’S A DAY THAT FOCUSES ON EYE HEALTH FOR ADULTS AND CHILDREN. JOINING US TO TALK ABOUT HOW IMPORTANT WORLD SIGHT DAY IS IS DOCTOR DESTINY DRAKULICH WITH UNMC. WELCOME, DOCTOR DRAKULICH. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME. HEY, FIRST OFF, FOR PEOPLE WHO DON’T KNOW WHAT IS WORLD SIGHT DAY. SO WORLD SIGHT DAY IS A DAY THAT’S SET ASIDE FOR THE WORLD TO FOCUS ON THE PROTECTING YOUR EYES AND PROTECTING YOUR VISION. IT’S ALSO BRINGS ABOUT AWARENESS OF VISION ISSUES, IMPAIRMENTS, AND BLINDNESS. CURRENTLY, ABOUT 90% OF EYE CONDITIONS ARE ACTUALLY TREATABLE OR PREVENTABLE IF DETECTED EARLY. SO IS THERE A THEME FOR THIS YEAR? YES, ABSOLUTELY. THIS YEAR’S THEME IS CHILDREN LOVE YOUR EYES. AND SO IT’S FOCUSING ON CHILDREN’S VISION. IT’S FOCUSING ON SCREENING. IT’S FOCUSING ON EYE EXAMS FOR CHILDREN, FOCUSING ON DEBUNKING MYTHS AND, YOU KNOW, SOCIAL STIGMAS ABOUT GLASSES AND ABOUT VISION ISSUES. CURRENTLY, EVEN IN OUR STATE OF NEBRASKA, 1 IN 5 CHILDREN ENTERING KINDERGARTEN. KINDERGARTEN. HAVE UNDETECTED VISION ISSUES. WELL, WHILE WE’RE ON THE TOPIC OF CHILDREN, HOW OFTEN WOULD YOU SAY CHILDREN SHOULD GET THEIR EYES TESTED? GENERALLY, IF THERE’S NO CONCERNS WITH FAMILY HISTORY OR CONCERNS OF THE PEDIATRICIAN, I USUALLY RECOMMEND THE FIRST EXAM BE ABOUT NINE MONTHS A YEAR. AFTER THAT, EVERY 2 TO 3 YEARS. SO AT THREE YEARS AND THEN AGAIN AT FIVE, AND THEN EVERY TWO YEARS AFTER THAT, UNLESS A VISION ISSUE OR REFRACTIVE CONDITION IS FOUND, THEN I WOULD SWITCH TO EVERY YEAR. AND AS FOR ADULTS, HOW OFTEN SHOULD THEY GET SCREENED? YOU KNOW, AS LONG AS ADULTS ARE, YOU KNOW, HAVE HEALTHY EYES. NO SYSTEMIC CONDITIONS LIKE HYPERTENSION OR DIABETES. I GENERALLY RECOMMEND EVERY TWO YEARS UP UNTIL BY THE MID 50S TO 60S AND THEN TO GO TO EVERY YEAR. THOSE ARE WHEN THE TIMES WHEN THOSE AGE RELATED EYE CONDITIONS LIKE CATARACTS, GLAUCOMA AND MACULAR DEGENERATION TEND TO SHOW UP. IS THERE ANYTHING THAT PEOPLE JUST IF THEY DON’T HAVE EYE CONDITIONS, CAN DO TO KEEP THEIR EYES HEALTHY? OH, ABSOLUTELY. YOU KNOW, THE TOP THINGS THAT I TALK ABOUT WITH MY PATIENTS ARE PROTECTING YOUR EYES FROM THE SUN. UV CAN CAUSE A LOT OF DAMAGE TO THE EYES, TO THE LENSES, CAUSING EARLY CATARACTS. AND ACTUALLY CAUSING WORSENING MACULAR DEGENERATION. NO SMOKING. SMOKING IS REALLY BAD FOR THE EYES. AGAIN, SAME THING YOU CAN HAVE A LOT OF MACULAR CONDITIONS OR WORSEN WITH SMOKING AS WELL AS EARLY CATARACTS. AND THEN THE THIRD IS NUTRITION. EATING A DIET THAT’S FULL OF GREEN, LEAFY VEGETABLES, DARKLY PIGMENTED FRUITS, THINGS THAT ARE HIGH IN ANTIOXIDANTS ARE VERY PROTECTIVE FOR THE EYE. ALSO, GETTING THOSE ANNUAL SCREENINGS EITHER ANNUAL OR EVERY TWO YEARS GETTING INTO AN EYE DOCTOR OR AN OPTOMETRIST OR AN OPHTHALMOLOGIST AND HAVING THEM LOOK AT THE EYES. SUCH I
Omaha doctor discusses how to keep our eyes healthy on World Sight Day
Updated: 4:45 PM CDT Oct 10, 2024
Thursday is World Sight Day. It’s a day that focuses on eye health for adults and kids.Dr. Desinee Drakulich from UNMC joined KETV NewsWatch 7 to discuss how often kids should get their eyes checked, how to keep our eyes healthy, and more. See the interview in the video above.Click here for the latest headlines from KETV NewsWatch 7
Thursday is World Sight Day. It’s a day that focuses on eye health for adults and kids.
Dr. Desinee Drakulich from UNMC joined KETV NewsWatch 7 to discuss how often kids should get their eyes checked, how to keep our eyes healthy, and more.
See the interview in the video above.
Click here for the latest headlines from KETV NewsWatch 7
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