Hey There, Sugar: Diabetes Affects Your Eyes
Diabetes can lead to various potential health complications, including conditions that affect your eye health and vision. The longer you’ve had diabetes (whether it’s type 1 or 2) and if you struggle with controlling your blood sugar levels, the higher your risk for certain eye diseases.
Your optometrist is here to help you safeguard your eye health. Diabetic eye exams have additional, noninvasive tests so we can thoroughly check your eyes and visual health for signs of diabetic eye disease. Schedule your routine eye exam today.
Request AppointmentAre Diabetic Eye Exams Covered by OHIP?
The Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) updated eye exam coverage as of September 1, 2023. Patients with diabetes are eligible for annual OHIP-insured comprehensive eye exams.
With these changes, optometrists have the authority to clinically assess and verify a diagnosis of diabetes. So, if you have any questions about your eye exam coverage, please reach out to our team. We’re here to help.
How Blood Sugar Affects Your Vision & Eye Health
Our optometrists will test your vision and the health of your eyes during your diabetic eye exam. We will use retinal imaging and optical coherence tomography (OCT), with pupil dilation, to see inside your eye.
If we see any signs of diabetic eye disease, we can recommend actions to preserve your visual health. Diabetic eye diseases and damage from high blood sugar may not show symptoms initially, so routine eye exams are crucial for diagnosis and treatment.
Diabetic eye disease includes 4 conditions linked to elevated blood sugar levels: diabetic retinopathy, macular edema, glaucoma, and cataracts.
The blood vessels in your eyes can be damaged by high blood sugar levels. High blood sugar restricts blood flow to your eyes, causing the small blood vessels to leak, swell, and close, resulting in diabetic retinopathy. If this happens, abnormal blood vessels can begin to form, causing further issues.
Diabetic macular edema is a condition related to the health of blood vessels in your eyes and is commonly caused by prolonged diabetic retinopathy.
Fluid buildup in your eye can cause your macula—responsible for clear central vision—to swell, causing wavy or blurry central vision.
Diabetes can cause the pressure inside of your eyes to rise, which could put you at a higher risk of glaucoma. At first, glaucoma may not present any symptoms, but it does impact your vision over time, typically starting at the peripheral edges and moving inward. Vision loss from glaucoma cannot be reversed, but its progression can often be slowed with medicated eye drops.
People with diabetes are more likely to develop cataracts at a younger age. Cataracts cause the lens in your eye to become cloudy. Your optometrist can prescribe stronger glasses to help you see with cataracts, but eventually, you may need cataract surgery to remove the cloudiness.
Protecting Your Vision: Schedule Your Routine Eye Exam Today
People with diabetes should have their eyes checked every year, and if they notice any new vision symptoms, they should visit their optometrist for a health check immediately.
Regular eye exams can also detect early signs of diabetes if your family doctor hasn’t already diagnosed you.
Our optometrists will try to prevent and mitigate any harmful effects of eye disease with early treatment to prevent further damage to your eyes. If you are concerned about the health of your eyes, schedule an appointment to speak to your optometrist.
Request AppointmentVisit Our Location
You can find us right on the corner of Frank St and James St, just beside the Strathroy Library.
Our Address
- 22 Frank St
- Strathroy, ON N7G 3X3
Contact Us
- Phone: 519-245-2000
- Email: [email protected]
Hours of Operation
- Monday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Tuesday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Wednesday: 12:00 AM – 8:00 PM
- Thursday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Friday: By appointment only
- Saturday: Closed
- Sunday: Closed
All office visits are by appointment only.
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