The Hidden Threat: How Diabetes Affects Your Eyes
Here’s what makes diabetic eye disease so dangerous: It often develops without warning signs. By the time you notice changes in your vision, significant damage may have already occurred—and some of that damage can be irreversible.
Understanding Diabetic Retinopathy
Your retina is like the film in a camera—a thin layer of light-sensitive tissue at the back of your eye that captures images and sends them to your brain. This remarkable tissue requires a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients delivered through a network of tiny, delicate blood vessels.
When diabetes strikes your eyes:
- High blood sugar levels damage these delicate blood vessels
- Damaged vessels begin to leak blood and fluid onto the retina
- The retina swells and becomes starved of oxygen
- New, abnormal blood vessels may grow, causing further complications
- Scar tissue can form, potentially leading to retinal detachment
The progression is often silent, which is why regular monitoring is absolutely critical for anyone with diabetes.
Are You at Risk?
While anyone with diabetes can develop diabetic retinopathy, certain factors significantly increase your risk:
Poor blood sugar control
The most significant risk factor you can influence
Duration of diabetes
Risk increases with each year you’ve had diabetes
High blood pressure
Doubles the damage to your blood vessels
High cholesterol
Accelerates blood vessel deterioration
Pregnancy
Hormonal changes can rapidly worsen diabetic eye disease
Smoking
Dramatically increases complications
The Reality Check
If you’ve had diabetes for 10 years or more, you have up to an 80% chance of developing some degree of diabetic retinopathy. However, with proper management and regular monitoring, severe vision loss is largely preventable.