Myopia - Dietary Influences page 3

[Corvidae]

I had once had the opportunity to review a study with chickens, and the effect of reduced peripheral vision to eye development and vision changes.

Interesting, do you happen to remember the study? My masters research was with bird vision. Primarily from an ecological behavioral standpoint, but I measured the visual field of three different species of raptors/birds of prey. Most birds--especially "prey" birds like ducks and chickens--are almost ALL peripheral field; id be interested to see how changes to that peripheral field would affect their vision, or what behavioral adaptations they might do to compensate.

Anyway, sorry we accused you of being a spam-troll. >.< I am fascinated by this because my vision has been getting steadily worse since I first got glasses in 6th grade. I have contacts now, and one is -4 and one is -5. I had a huge drop in my prescription last year when I dealt with a bout of Thygessons for a few months. The keratitis has cleared up but my vision didnt bounce back x/ My current job has me working at the computer, intently, for hours, which cant be helping things either.

Ive read some things on rehabilitation of vision, but one of the key things that people seem to say is key to getting better is to stop wearing whatever corrective lenses you have, or only wear them if you need them (like when driving). This is a problem for me, cause I have contacts so its a pain to take them in and out all the time. Some people have suggested finding an ophthalmologist who is willing to gradually under-prescribe your lenses in slow steps, but i dont know how to track one down that is willing to do such an unconventional practice.

I would love so much to no longer be reliant on lenses. I love camping and travelling and having to deal with lenses and worry about them all the time is such a huge burden. >.<

[SleepyRoots]

This sounds hugely intriguing. I am very short sighted, and have been since primary school. I am starting to blame school sandwiches for a lot of my problems

It makes a lot of sense that eye muscles could be retrained in a similar way to other muscles. Is it important to exercise at the edge of clear focus or is just leaving my glasses off a viable option? Also, is there such a thing as overtraining, and therefore a limit on how much to do without corrective lenses? It would be practical for me to do without for large parts of the day, but if I just tire my eyes out I imagine it's not good either?

[fiercehunter]

My eyesight went at about age 10 after a decade of Girl Scout cookies and chocolate shakes.

[Freedish]

afrauenfeld,

I've been researching this topic for a year and come to the same conclusion.
I totally support your practice and sincerely hope more people become aware of this.

Also, what's your stance on pinhole glasses? I wore them for a few weeks but didn't notice any changes. Thanks

*edit* I'll add that I am very myopic with -7.5 in both eyes

[paleo-bunny]

OP: Sorry about the suspicions that you were just spamming.

I've read that the introduction of wheat into the diet of a developing nation is associated with short sightedness. Do you believe it's wheat specifically or just any insulin spikes associated with higher carb consumption that cause myopia? Of course as wheat is addictive for many it will lead to more insulin spikes daily. If its insulin spikes alone that are to blame, then snacking and eating chronic low fat would be major contributing factors wouldn't they?

[afrauenfeld]

The exercise at the edge of focus is important to stimulate the eye.

If you go beyond the point where things appear 'fuzzy', the eye basically just 'gives up'. It's like a weight lifter trying to lift a weight beyond his ability - not being able to pick up the weight means no exercise.

That said, I strongly recommend doing near work without glasses when possible. The majority of the detrimental impact from wearing the glasses comes from wearing them while focused on near plane.

Overtraining is possible, you don't want to squint or strain (ever, really). That type of effort is counter productive. The edge of focus exercise should be quite painless, the main effort is to get used to reading or working at that range, and having the correct plus-lens prescription (going out and getting that, keeping up with exercise daily, not wearing full strength prescription when working up close - it's the process that people struggle with, more so than the actual exercise).

On the subject of squinting, one of the (few) things I like about the Bates method is (shaded) outdoor/sun exposure. I suggest not wearing sunglasses, instead using a hat to prevent squinting. Quite a bit of research has suggested a positive impact from (shaded) sun exposure for the eye.

This sounds hugely intriguing. I am very short sighted, and have been since primary school. I am starting to blame school sandwiches for a lot of my problems

It makes a lot of sense that eye muscles could be retrained in a similar way to other muscles. Is it important to exercise at the edge of clear focus or is just leaving my glasses off a viable option? Also, is there such a thing as overtraining, and therefore a limit on how much to do without corrective lenses? It would be practical for me to do without for large parts of the day, but if I just tire my eyes out I imagine it's not good either?

[afrauenfeld]

The single biggest contributor to initially temporary myopia symptoms (almost all myopia starts as "fake" myopia, ie. just symptoms resulting from strain) is forcing the muscles to maintain a close-up focal plane for extended periods of time. A permanent state of myopia is then really driven home by minus-lens prescription.

There are a number of anecdotes of Russian draft dodgers with perfect vision wearing minus-lens prescriptions to reduce their eyesight to get out of the draft. It used to be fairly widely known that minus-lenses used on healthy eyes will create myopia.

Diet is just the final nail in the coffin. It's like my 'sprained ankle' analogy. You sprain your ankle, you go to the doctor, the doctor tells you that you will need a cast, permanently. While you wear it, your ankle doesn't hurt. Your muscles atrophy, and if you take the cast off, you can't use the foot. You accept the cast as permanent necessity. Eating lots of carbs and not enough protein just helps to ensure that you don't get the muscle growth ability to ease any sort of recovery.

That's much of the mainstream vision care philosophy, in a nutshell.

OP: Sorry about the suspicions that you were just spamming.

I've read that the introduction of wheat into the diet of a developing nation is associated with short sightedness. Do you believe it's wheat specifically or just any insulin spikes associated with higher carb consumption that cause myopia? Of course as wheat is addictive for many it will lead to more insulin spikes daily. If its insulin spikes alone that are to blame, then snacking and eating chronic low fat would be major contributing factors wouldn't they?

[afrauenfeld]

I personally do not advocate pinhole glasses in our programs.

There are actually some peripheral vision exercises that have been contributing to increased response during edge-of-focus reading practice.

afrauenfeld,

I've been researching this topic for a year and come to the same conclusion.
I totally support your practice and sincerely hope more people become aware of this.

Also, what's your stance on pinhole glasses? I wore them for a few weeks but didn't notice any changes. Thanks

*edit* I'll add that I am very myopic with -7.5 in both eyes

[afrauenfeld]

I'll see if I can track down the study for you.

Not wearing glasses other than driving is a commonly recommended practice by those who focus on rehabilitative practices. I happen to disagree with this for several reasons. First of, once everything around you is blurry, your eyes have nothing to work with. The edge of focus is key, giving the eye a frame of reference. "Here, is sharp." ... "Here, is not sharp." Keeping your glasses off is like rolling a boulder over you and calling it fitness exercise. It just wouldn't be fun, and I can't think of a tangible benefit (for no glasses, or the boulder).

Second, and this is truly just my opinion (not grounded in any studies to back this up), is that much of this whole process of sharp vision and rehabilitation truly happens at a more profound level in your brain. For instance, I've stopped talking much about the 'elongated eyeball' as I happen to have found that patients who take too much stock in that physiological description, appear to progress more slowly. They are aware of the magnitude of the challenge, and somehow it affects progress negatively.

As such, I don't advocate reminding your consciousness, your mind, of your vision deficiency all throughout the day. I say, wear the glasses, enjoy seeing sharply. Take them off occasionally for a while, just to put them back on and enjoy the crispness of your surroundings. Experience the positive emotion from seeing sharply. Then read for a few hours using plus-lens and practice edge-of-focus. A positive mindset can significantly improve progress.

As for the prescription, you can order to your hearts content from online vision sites. It's the way around having to deal with prescriptions locally. I caution against too much unguided self experimenting, however. This is your vision you are dealing with, not something easily replaced. Diet, lifestyle, exercise, stress levels, all should be considered.

The idea is a very non-invasive, gradual rehab program. Taking huge leaps (like not wearing glasses except for driving) usually leads to abandoning the whole thing. It's just too much to take on. Baby steps, and having support when you may experience strange symptoms, setbacks, and progress (ie. time to change prescription, step up exercises, etc), are key to a successful vision rehab project.

20/20 is possible even when starting out with -4.00. I personally know individuals who have accomplished it. That big of a difference though may mean 3, 5 or even more years of keeping on top of exercises. It's a long time, but in the scheme of a lifetime, I would consider it a worthwhile pursuit!

Interesting, do you happen to remember the study? My masters research was with bird vision. Primarily from an ecological behavioral standpoint, but I measured the visual field of three different species of raptors/birds of prey. Most birds--especially "prey" birds like ducks and chickens--are almost ALL peripheral field; id be interested to see how changes to that peripheral field would affect their vision, or what behavioral adaptations they might do to compensate.

Anyway, sorry we accused you of being a spam-troll. >.< I am fascinated by this because my vision has been getting steadily worse since I first got glasses in 6th grade. I have contacts now, and one is -4 and one is -5. I had a huge drop in my prescription last year when I dealt with a bout of Thygessons for a few months. The keratitis has cleared up but my vision didnt bounce back x/ My current job has me working at the computer, intently, for hours, which cant be helping things either.

Ive read some things on rehabilitation of vision, but one of the key things that people seem to say is key to getting better is to stop wearing whatever corrective lenses you have, or only wear them if you need them (like when driving). This is a problem for me, cause I have contacts so its a pain to take them in and out all the time. Some people have suggested finding an ophthalmologist who is willing to gradually under-prescribe your lenses in slow steps, but i dont know how to track one down that is willing to do such an unconventional practice.

I would love so much to no longer be reliant on lenses. I love camping and travelling and having to deal with lenses and worry about them all the time is such a huge burden. >.<

[afrauenfeld]

Here is a link to the abstract of the chick study: In a matter of minutes, the eye ca... [Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2005] - PubMed - NCBI

I've seen literally hundreds of these types of studies, all with varying goals and parameters. The one constant is that the eye can adapt itself very quickly, and myopia is stress induced.

Interesting, do you happen to remember the study? My masters research was with bird vision. Primarily from an ecological behavioral standpoint, but I measured the visual field of three different species of raptors/birds of prey. Most birds--especially "prey" birds like ducks and chickens--are almost ALL peripheral field; id be interested to see how changes to that peripheral field would affect their vision, or what behavioral adaptations they might do to compensate.

Anyway, sorry we accused you of being a spam-troll. >.< I am fascinated by this because my vision has been getting steadily worse since I first got glasses in 6th grade. I have contacts now, and one is -4 and one is -5. I had a huge drop in my prescription last year when I dealt with a bout of Thygessons for a few months. The keratitis has cleared up but my vision didnt bounce back x/ My current job has me working at the computer, intently, for hours, which cant be helping things either.

Ive read some things on rehabilitation of vision, but one of the key things that people seem to say is key to getting better is to stop wearing whatever corrective lenses you have, or only wear them if you need them (like when driving). This is a problem for me, cause I have contacts so its a pain to take them in and out all the time. Some people have suggested finding an ophthalmologist who is willing to gradually under-prescribe your lenses in slow steps, but i dont know how to track one down that is willing to do such an unconventional practice.

I would love so much to no longer be reliant on lenses. I love camping and travelling and having to deal with lenses and worry about them all the time is such a huge burden. >.<