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An Optometrist Shared The One Eye Product We Should All Stop Using
An Optometrist Shared The One Eye Product We Should All Stop Using

Yahoo

time4 days ago

  • Health
  • Yahoo

An Optometrist Shared The One Eye Product We Should All Stop Using

Eye health is often overlooked. Tons of Americans skip their annual eye exams: Of those who are considered to be at high risk for vision loss, which is roughly 4 in 10 Americans, 40% didn't get their eyes checked out in the past year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 'It's not until you have [a] problem with your eyes that you really become grateful for your vision,' said Dr. Michelle Holmes, an optometrist at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California. There's a lot you can do to protect your eye health. You can keep up with your annual eye exams, wear sunglasses to shield your eyes from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, and avoid wearing contacts to bed or in the pool, to name a few. But is there one habit you should never do, even though it may seem like eye care: Don't use eye-whitening, or red-eye relieving, drops. 'My concern with those types of eye drops is that eye-whitening drops can be used by someone to mask redness, and, oftentimes, that redness is a symptom of some more serious underlying condition,' Holmes told HuffPost. Here's why you may want to steer clear of redness relief eye drops. Related: If You Don't Pass This Extremely Easy Hygiene Test, You're Officially Stinkier Than The Average Human Related: It Turns Out That Most People Wipe Their Butts Completely Wrong, But This Doctor Is Here To Teach Us The Right Way When your eye is irritated, as it may be with pink eye or certain allergies, the blood vessels located in the front of the eye will dilate and engorge. 'That's what causes the white part of the eye to look red and angry,' Holmes explained. Those blood vessels serve an important purpose — when inflamed, they indicate something is wrong, Holmes said. This could be due to a mild problem, such as a cold or dust in the eye, or it may be a symptom of a more serious health condition like an infection, glaucoma or a corneal abrasion. 'It's not normal to have a red, angry-looking eye,' Holmes said. Red-eye relieving drops target these blood vessels to constrict and minimize their appearance. Temporarily, this makes the eyes white again, however, these drops could mask the problem at hand. 'It may make you think everything is OK with your eyes when really the can be something quite serious going on,' Holmes said. It's a bandaid, not a fix, she added. That redness can help your eye doctor detect eye diseases. With certain eye conditions, time is of the essence. Left untreated, they can worsen and lead to complications, including infections, and, in serious cases, vision loss. Not to mention, these drops may cause a rebound effect. 'As the eye drops wear off and nutrients and oxygen start to flow back through those blood vessels, they actually will dilate and engorge more than initially,' Holmes said. People can then get trapped in a cycle: their eyes appear red and irritated, they use redness-relieving drops that provide temporary relief, but then the redness comes back — this time, even worse — and they use the drops again. In some cases, people become dependent on red-eye relieving drops and the underlying health issue is never addressed, Holmes said. There are other remedies you can use instead. Whenever a patient tells Holmes they use eye-whitening drops, she recommends they opt for lubricating artificial tears instead. Her advice: use preservative-free drops — 'they're gentler on the eyes,' she explained. These products are generally thought to be the safest type of preservative-free eye drops. The Food and Drug Administration recently issued a warning against 26 over-the-counter eye drop products due to the risk of eye infections that may cause partial vision loss or blindness. Finally, if your eye is red and irritated, talk to an eye care provider. Even if you give your local eye clinic a call, the front desk should be able to triage the redness — and determine if you need follow-up care or testing — and recommend safe, effective eye drops. 'Oftentimes, the cause of the redness can be determined and more effectively addressed when the reason why is known,' Holmes article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in Goodful: This Woman Is Going Viral For Begging Women Not To Get Married Right Now, And Personally, I Couldn't Agree More Also in Goodful: People Are Sharing Their Biggest "How Doesn't Everyone Know This?" Facts, And I'm Honestly Embarrassed I Never Realized Some Of These Also in Goodful: "I Thought This Was Normal": People Are Sharing Diagnoses They Received After Someone Else Pointed Out Their Symptoms

Eye Doctors Are Begging You To Stop Using This Common Product In Your Eyes
Eye Doctors Are Begging You To Stop Using This Common Product In Your Eyes

Yahoo

time16-05-2025

  • Health
  • Yahoo

Eye Doctors Are Begging You To Stop Using This Common Product In Your Eyes

Eye health is often overlooked. Tons of Americans skip their annual eye exams: Of those who are considered to be at high risk for vision loss, which is roughly 4 in 10 Americans, 40% didn't get their eyes checked out in the past year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 'It's not until you have [a] problem with your eyes that you really become grateful for your vision,' said Dr. Michelle Holmes, an optometrist at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California. There's a lot you can do to protect your eye health. You can keep up with your annual eye exams, wear sunglasses to shield your eyes from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, and avoid wearing contacts to bed or in the pool, to name a few. But there is one habit you should never do, even though it may seem like eye care: Don't use eye-whitening, or red-eye relieving, drops. 'My concern with those types of eye drops is that eye-whitening drops can be used by someone to mask redness, and, oftentimes, that redness is a symptom of some more serious underlying condition,' Holmes told HuffPost. Here's why you may want to steer clear of redness relief eye drops. Related: If You're Feeling Stressed, Here Are 12 Totally Wholesome Posts To Help Uplift Your Mood Related: I Believed I Was Destined To Be A Nun. But When I Moved Into A Convent, Things Changed. When your eye is irritated, as it may be with pink eye or certain allergies, the blood vessels located in the front of the eye will dilate and engorge. 'That's what causes the white part of the eye to look red and angry,' Holmes explained. Those blood vessels serve an important purpose — when inflamed, they indicate something is wrong, Holmes said. This could be due to a mild problem, such as a cold or dust in the eye, or it may be a symptom of a more serious health condition like an infection, glaucoma, or a corneal abrasion. 'It's not normal to have a red, angry-looking eye,' Holmes said. Red-eye relieving drops target these blood vessels to constrict and minimize their appearance. Temporarily, this makes the eyes white again, however, these drops could mask the problem at hand. 'It may make you think everything is OK with your eyes when really there can be something quite serious going on,' Holmes said. "It's a band-aid, not a fix," she added. That redness can help your eye doctor detect eye diseases. With certain eye conditions, time is of the essence. Left untreated, they can worsen and lead to complications, including infections, and, in serious cases, vision loss. Not to mention, these drops may cause a rebound effect. 'As the eye drops wear off and nutrients and oxygen start to flow back through those blood vessels, they actually will dilate and engorge more than initially,' Holmes said. People can then get trapped in a cycle: their eyes appear red and irritated, they use redness-relieving drops that provide temporary relief, but then the redness comes back — this time, even worse — and they use the drops again. In some cases, people become dependent on red-eye relieving drops, and the underlying health issue is never addressed, Holmes said. There are other remedies you can use instead. Whenever a patient tells Holmes they use eye-whitening drops, she recommends they opt for lubricating artificial tears instead. Her advice: use preservative-free drops — 'they're gentler on the eyes,' she explained. These products are generally thought to be the safest type of preservative-free eye drops. The Food and Drug Administration recently issued a warning against 26 over-the-counter eye drop products due to the risk of eye infections that may cause partial vision loss or blindness. Finally, if your eye is red and irritated, talk to an eye care provider. Even if you give your local eye clinic a call, the front desk should be able to triage the redness — and determine if you need follow-up care or testing — and recommend safe, effective eye drops. 'Oftentimes, the cause of the redness can be determined and more effectively addressed when the reason why is known,' Holmes article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in Goodful: I Prayed For Years That No One Would Discover The Issue With My Private Parts. Now I'm Done Hiding. Also in Goodful: "It's Soul-Crushing": People Are Revealing The TellTale Signs Someone Has Been Through A Lot Of Shit In Their Life, And Some Of These Might Surprise You Also in Goodful: 22 Cute, Happy, And Wholesome Posts I Saw On The Internet This Week That You Absolutely Need To See

Why You Shouldn't Use Eye Drops, According To A Doctor
Why You Shouldn't Use Eye Drops, According To A Doctor

Buzz Feed

time16-05-2025

  • Health
  • Buzz Feed

Why You Shouldn't Use Eye Drops, According To A Doctor

Eye health is often overlooked. Tons of Americans skip their annual eye exams: Of those who are considered to be at high risk for vision loss, which is roughly 4 in 10 Americans, 40% didn't get their eyes checked out in the past year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 'It's not until you have [a] problem with your eyes that you really become grateful for your vision,' said Dr. Michelle Holmes, an optometrist at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California. There's a lot you can do to protect your eye health. You can keep up with your annual eye exams, wear sunglasses to shield your eyes from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, and avoid wearing contacts to bed or in the pool, to name a few. But there is one habit you should never do, even though it may seem like eye care: Don't use eye-whitening, or red-eye relieving, drops. 'My concern with those types of eye drops is that eye-whitening drops can be used by someone to mask redness, and, oftentimes, that redness is a symptom of some more serious underlying condition,' Holmes told HuffPost. Here's why you may want to steer clear of redness relief eye drops. When your eye is irritated, as it may be with pink eye or certain allergies, the blood vessels located in the front of the eye will dilate and engorge. 'That's what causes the white part of the eye to look red and angry,' Holmes explained. Those blood vessels serve an important purpose — when inflamed, they indicate something is wrong, Holmes said. This could be due to a mild problem, such as a cold or dust in the eye, or it may be a symptom of a more serious health condition like an infection, glaucoma, or a corneal abrasion. 'It's not normal to have a red, angry-looking eye,' Holmes said. Red-eye relieving drops target these blood vessels to constrict and minimize their appearance. Temporarily, this makes the eyes white again, however, these drops could mask the problem at hand. 'It may make you think everything is OK with your eyes when really there can be something quite serious going on,' Holmes said. "It's a band-aid, not a fix," she added. That redness can help your eye doctor detect eye diseases. With certain eye conditions, time is of the essence. Left untreated, they can worsen and lead to complications, including infections, and, in serious cases, vision loss. Not to mention, these drops may cause a rebound effect. 'As the eye drops wear off and nutrients and oxygen start to flow back through those blood vessels, they actually will dilate and engorge more than initially,' Holmes said. People can then get trapped in a cycle: their eyes appear red and irritated, they use redness-relieving drops that provide temporary relief, but then the redness comes back — this time, even worse — and they use the drops again. In some cases, people become dependent on red-eye relieving drops, and the underlying health issue is never addressed, Holmes said. There are other remedies you can use instead. Whenever a patient tells Holmes they use eye-whitening drops, she recommends they opt for lubricating artificial tears instead. Her advice: use preservative-free drops — 'they're gentler on the eyes,' she explained. These products are generally thought to be the safest type of preservative-free eye drops. The Food and Drug Administration recently issued a warning against 26 over-the-counter eye drop products due to the risk of eye infections that may cause partial vision loss or blindness. Finally, if your eye is red and irritated, talk to an eye care provider. Even if you give your local eye clinic a call, the front desk should be able to triage the redness — and determine if you need follow-up care or testing — and recommend safe, effective eye drops. 'Oftentimes, the cause of the redness can be determined and more effectively addressed when the reason why is known,' Holmes said. HuffPost.

Scientists Just Uncovered A Major Alzheimer's Finding—And It Involves Ozempic
Scientists Just Uncovered A Major Alzheimer's Finding—And It Involves Ozempic

Yahoo

time15-04-2025

  • Health
  • Yahoo

Scientists Just Uncovered A Major Alzheimer's Finding—And It Involves Ozempic

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." It's hard to keep up with all of the potential perks of going on a GLP-1 receptor agonist medication like Ozempic. So far, researchers have found that these meds may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer, tamp down on symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and even treat addiction. Of course, that's on top of what they're designed to do—help with blood sugar control and weight loss. Now, a growing body of research suggests GLP-1s may also help lower the risk of Alzheimer's disease and dementia, too. And there's one more study to add to the mix. New research published in JAMA Neurology found a link between people who took GLP-1 receptor agonists and a lowered risk of Alzheimer's disease, which makes even more of a case for going on one of these medications. Here's what experts think of the new study and how it might apply to you. Meet the experts: Mir Ali, MD, medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA; Verna Porter, MD, neurologist and director of the Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease and Neurocognitive Disorders at Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, CA For the study, researchers analyzed health records of 396,963 people in Florida between January 2014 to June 2023. All of the participants were at least 50 years old and had type 2 diabetes. None had been diagnosed with Alzheimer disease and related dementias at the start of the study. The researchers discovered that people who took GLP-1 receptor agonists (like Ozempic) or a type of medicine known as SGLT2 inhibitors (which are also used to lower blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes) had a statistically significant lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and related dementias compared to people who were on other medications to lower blood sugar. People with type 2 diabetes are at a greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. (Research suggests that people with type 2 diabetes have a 50 percent higher risk of developing dementia.) The reason for that could be tied to things like insulin resistance, inflammation, and a higher risk of vascular damage, which are risk factors for Alzheimer's disease—and GLP-1 receptor agonists can lower the risks of those complications, explains Verna Porter, MD, neurologist and director of the Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease and Neurocognitive Disorders at Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. But these medications can also help people lose weight, feel better, and be able to lead a healthier lifestyle, points out Mir Ali, MD, medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA. 'When patients lose weight, risk factors [for Alzheimer's disease] like heart disease and diabetes improve, too,' he says. Dr. Porter says she has 'cautious optimism' about the latest study results, noting that she treats many patients who have both type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. GLP-1 receptor agonists work in the body in a few different ways. But these medications specifically signal to your brain to feel less hungry, making it less likely that you'll overeat, Dr. Ali explains. As a result, many people lose weight on these drugs. But the exact mechanisms of how the drug works in the brain in doing things like tamping down food noise, addiction, and now, decreasing Alzheimer's risk, is still under investigation. This isn't the first study to find a link between GLP-1 receptor agonists and a lowered risk of Alzheimer's disease in people with type 2 diabetes. A study published in October in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia found that people who took semaglutide (a GLP-1 receptor agonist medication) had a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease compared to people who took other medications to treat type 2 diabetes. Another study published in Nature Medicine in January found that people who took GLP-1 receptor agonist medications had a lowered risk of developing a slew of health conditions, including dementia. It's important to point out that a lot of these studies look at the impact of GLP-1 receptor agonists on people with type 2 diabetes. Meaning, it's not clear if taking these medications without having type 2 diabetes will have an impact on your Alzheimer's risk. But this growing body of research is definitely raising a lot of questions—and possibilities for treatment—as it unfolds. You Might Also Like Jennifer Garner Swears By This Retinol Eye Cream These New Kicks Will Help You Smash Your Cross-Training Goals

Your Dentist May Be Able to Identify a New Sign of Alzheimer's
Your Dentist May Be Able to Identify a New Sign of Alzheimer's

Yahoo

time16-03-2025

  • Health
  • Yahoo

Your Dentist May Be Able to Identify a New Sign of Alzheimer's

Just like your gut and reproductive organs, your mouth has its very own microbiome that plays a role in your health and wellness. Now, new research suggests that certain bacteria in your mouth could play a role in your risk of developing Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's disease is a complicated condition, with many different factors that influence when and if a person develops it. But the latest findings suggest what's happening in your mouth could be linked on some level with your brain health. Here's the deal. Meet the expert: Jennifer Bramen, PhD, is a senior research scientist and director of neuroimaging at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, CA; Mark S. Wolff, DDS, PhD, is dean of the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine The study, published in PNAS Nexus, looked at 110 people over the age of 50 who participated in an online study that tracks brain health of middle-aged people in the UK. The participants were broken into two groups: One group had no detectable decline in brain function, while the others had mild cognitive impairment, a condition where people have more memory or thinking problems than others their age. People with mild cognitive impairment are at a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease or dementia, according to the National Institute on Aging (NIA). The study participants provided the scientists with mouth rinse samples, which were then analyzed, allowing the researchers to break down the bacteria contained in each sample. The researchers discovered that certain bacteria found in the participants' mouths were linked with having better memory and attention; Others were associated with a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease. Which bacteria are associated with memory and attention? This study found that people who had large amounts of the bacteria Neisseria and Haemophilus had better memory and attention. They also could do complex tasks more easily, based on the findings. Which bacteria are linked with memory loss? The researchers found that people who had higher levels of the bacteria Porphyromonas (a key pathogen in chronic periodontitis) in their mouths were more likely to have memory problems. The bacteria Prevotella (also commonly found in peridontel disease) was also associated with people having the gene APOE4, which is linked to Alzheimer's disease. There have been several studies that have linked bacteria in the mouth to dementia. Research has generally suggested that having higher levels of harmful bacteria in the mouth may raise the risk of bodily inflammation, which could potentially also raise the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. The researchers in this study theorized that harmful bacteria could get into the bloodstream and damage the brain, raising the risk of Alzheimer's disease. They also suggest that a bacterial imbalance could impact how much nitric oxide is formed from nitrate, a compound in vegetables. Nitric oxide is important for memory and communication in the brain. But it's hard to say for sure that the bacteria causes dementia or issues with brain health, says Mark S. Wolff, DDS, PhD, dean of the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine. 'We need to be careful not to assert a cause and effect when both of these things may just be happening at the same time,' he says. 'People can have bad gum disease, and lots of bacteria, and develop Alzheimer's disease. Did one cause the other or did they just both occur because we weren't taking good care of our mouth while we were developing the Alzheimer's disease?' Eating a plant-based diet seems to be a good start, according to Jennifer Bramen, PhD, a senior research scientist and director of neuroimaging at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. Adding nitrate-rich foods like veggies into your diet 'can benefit the oral microbiome by promoting bacteria associated with better oral and cognitive health outcomes,' she says. This may also help to suppress bacteria that's linked with dementia, Bramen explains. Again, it's hard to say at this point that these bacteria cause Alzheimer's disease, they're just linked. But it's never a bad idea to up your veggie intake. You Might Also Like Can Apple Cider Vinegar Lead to Weight Loss? Bobbi Brown Shares Her Top Face-Transforming Makeup Tips for Women Over 50

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