How are your eyes guys? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:03:57 am
content: Hi all,Well, I'm 50 now......and the days of being nicknamed "Eagle Eyes Johnston" in the electronics workshop are dead and gone. The days of being able to spot a physical fault on a pcb that eluded everyone else are a memory. The days of getting up close and personal (say 4") to a pcb are now just a dream.All my life I had great near vision without glasses due to my short sightedness but it was when I hit 40 that I noticed by near vision was starting to get further and further from my face, and at about 48 it was starting to become a problem with SMD work. Without glasses I can focus only to about 9" infront of my nose.........thats the wrong side of easy SMD work. With glasses on for my distance vision my arms aren't long enough.So, I have 2 pairs of glasses now.........general varifocals for mid to distance, and my "computer glasses" which give me "around the room" and because they are varifocals I've had them made with reading glasses magnification (x2 or x3 I think) at the bottom.........perfect for electronics. I can see the computer screen, the workbenchg around me AND close-up & personal SMD work. Prior to them I was swapping glasses and wearing one of those magnifier hat things.On my wishlist is for the optometry world to come up with soft replacement lenses for the eye. I was at the optician only last week and was told "don't hold your breath"............th optometry world doesn't want it because revenue for reading glasses sales etc will plummet!I just wondered how everyone else is coping?Ian.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:06:22 am
content: Perfect for me. Apart from the occasional annoying scintillating scotoma.

author: Psi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:08:19 am
content: My eyes are -7.0I usually wear -6.5 monthly-use contact lenses so as to not 'stress' out my eyes, since i spend a lot of time looking at stuff up close.I have some daily disposable -7.0 lenses i throw in my eyes for a day if i'm going to be doing something that would benefit from extra sharp distance vision.

author: lowimpedance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:23:40 am
content: Yep glasses and lots of good lighting otherwise just a blur, and of course components are not getting any bigger !Quote from: EEVblog on April 28, 2015, 11:06:22 amSame until around the mid forties then like IanJ you start to notice the focusing issues and when pushing fifty its glasses optical aids and light all the way.

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:29:06 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on April 28, 2015, 11:06:22 amYup I noticed!........On your mailbag vids I often see you getting up close, it's about the only time I swear at you though the computer screen......Your time will come my friend!Ian.

author: jhalar
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:12:05 pm
content: When I was younger and in uni I used to work in quality control inspection of assembled pcbs in a contract assembly place. I could spot a soldering problem, dry joint easily without glasses.Now at 48 I wear reading glasses at +1.5 (getting close to +2.0) for reading, soldering or anything up close. Definitely going downhill.

author: Skimask
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:12:58 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on April 28, 2015, 11:06:22 amIsn't that a hoot when it happens?Almost looks like a tear in space-time sometimes.And ya, my eyes have went to crap in the last 4-5 years.Went from easily reading 0603's up close and personal to just barely making out the letters on a DIP-40.

author: 4cx10000
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:26:44 pm
content: I use progressive contact lenses and I must admit that it was my ever best decision to choose those instead of ordinary glasses. Especially doing things up side down, meaning that they will move either up to my pan or down and effectively shutting my mouth. The only bad thing is that I still need plenty of light when working with electronics, but what can one expect when the eyes get old

author: Muttley Snickers
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:33:05 pm
content: My macro is good but that doesn't help me at all when rabbits are out at 100.I need to get bigger scopes or they need to make rabbits the size of kangaroo's.Muttley

author: smjcuk
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:43:21 pm
content: My eyes are rubbish. I wish I had an astigmatism pot like my scope does.

author: PeterFW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 12:55:09 pm
content: Quote from: Skimask on April 28, 2015, 12:12:58 pmHoot? Im unable to do annything for half an hour... immensely annoying.Paired with a decent amount of floaters and wobbly cornea in both eyes.Oh... and two giant big blobs in my right vitreous humour who decide from time to time to go on a yourney that looks like a big cloud is passing infront of my eye, it never gets booring.Oh... and the crusting and itching and little bits of retina gone funny. Never gets old.Luckily only stuff far away i can not see proper, up close i have no problems.

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 01:18:01 pm
content: Whilst we are on it...........I also have severe dry eyes (my win7 desktop theme is dark and the brightness down low), and I have a few retinal vein occlusions (tiny retinal blood clots) in both which give me permanent blind spots in my vision. The brain compensates thankfully as long as the other eye is clear in that exact spot...........thankfully!It makes electronics an experience for sure!Ian.

author: dexters_lab
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 01:56:46 pm
content: Started with glasses back before my teens, i'm on monthly disposable contacts that you wear 24/7. Thankfully my eyes are stable at the moment and have been for a long time at -4.75 and -5.0 with no astigmatism so contacts work really well for me.my brother has macular degeneration and my dad has had a detached retina in recent years so maybe things wont be good for ever

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 02:05:24 pm
content: Mine have been poor since childhood and are getting worse as I approach 50. Just glad I own some decent microscopes.

author: Mechanical Menace
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 02:20:19 pm
content: Depends on how tired I am tbh. Sometimes it's great, others I can hardly focus on my monitor.

author: Len
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 02:46:27 pm
content: My eyes are fine, but I wish Microsoft would stop shrinking the font size in Windows every year!

author: Scrts
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 02:50:16 pm
content: Pretty bad. I am 27 and I need glasses with -2.25.My parents have saved some money when bought my first PC and a used, shit quality CRT monitor. I had to compensate the price with my eyes...

author: PeterFW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 02:55:27 pm
content: Quote from: Scrts on April 28, 2015, 02:50:16 pmNope, that is not how you develop bad eyesight...

author: MarkL
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 03:10:49 pm
content: I've been wearing glasses/contacts since I was 7 or 8. My eyes have been stable at -4.50/-4.75, but about 5 years ago I started to need mild (1.00 or 1.50) reading glasses.I had lasik two years ago and my distance vision is 20/20 with no lenses, which is great because I like to do a lot of outdoor activities. But my near vision is awful now and I can't see anything up close (meaning a few feet) without reading glasses. There's also some distortions from the procedure. It definitely was not a slam dunk.There was fair warning this might happen, and I still don't know if it was a good trade. It certainly wasn't on the positive side for fine electronics and computer work.

author: hans
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 03:35:42 pm
content: I'm in my mid twenties, and have had -4 to -4.5 since I was a kid.My near eye sight is quite good. I use 0402 SMD passives on all hobby projects now, but only manage with good light. I still use a magnifying loop for inspection though, as you do.Working a whole day on close sight is straining for everyone I think, so I try to avoid that.My far eye sight always needs glasses, because else I cannot read text ~30cm away (quite useless in our modern lives). I don't wear lenses, because I can only imagine it being tedious.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 03:59:54 pm
content: 25/20 vision in the one eye, 6/10 in the other. now it is down to 20/20 and still 6/10. Need glasses to read now, unlike when I was younger. Every bench has a magnifier of some type at it, mostly old lenses from cameras, just to make reading of those flyspecks possible now. Before I could see that dry joint, now it is a matter of scanning the board with the magnifier to get it visible.Had a lovely chat with Iqubal my optometrist earlier this month, my eyes are stable, just getting old. Pressure perfect, and I even had some lovely 8Mp images taken of each retina, courtesy of his new Nikon optometric bench. Nothing wrong, just astigmatism in the one eye with poor vision. As he said, that eyeball is shaped like a football. Discussed LASIK with him, and I am not a candidate ( thanks, I can save $5k) as it will make the corneas too thin in the middle, and in any case it only lasts around 10 years on average, after which you need glasses again and contacts have to be hard ones to fit the eye. Rather wear glasses than have the eye pop from a fall.

author: steve30
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 04:13:25 pm
content: My eye sight started to get bad when I was about 16. I've been wearing glasses all the time since then, and now I am 24. It'll probably only get worse.Not sure what my prescription is (I keep forgetting to ask my optician).

author: Skimask
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 07:27:29 pm
content: Quote from: PeterFW on April 28, 2015, 12:55:09 pm1/2 hour? Only happens for 10, maybe 20 minutes at most for me. First time I saw it, scared the hell out of me, thought I was having a stroke or something similar. "Silent Migraine" my ass.Sure is a weird picture to view though...

author: PA0PBZ
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 07:40:26 pm
content: I always had a good eyesight, never got to measure it but I could read the road signs way before anyone else could. Getting close to 50 I had the same problem everyone else has, so reading glasses are what it takes. Can still read my mobile screen without the glasses when I'm outside on a sunny day (small pupils), but inside looking at anything close... yeah I need the glasses. It's just one of the small annoyances getting older I guess. I really hated it for some time but learned to accept it.

author: at2marty
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 08:49:09 pm
content: I'm 48 and started noticing the change at around 46 or so. I had the option of just getting reading glasses or getting a prescription (my eyes are not the same). I opted for prescription glasses that I need for reading, computer work or anything small.

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 09:15:49 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on April 28, 2015, 11:06:22 amHa - you're whistling past the graveyard Dave.Presbyopiais an inevitable part of aging. It usually sets in around the mid 40s.....If that flasher worsens and persists, or you get more of them see a Doctor - it could be an early sign of an impending retinal detachment. I would know, I've had 2 of them..

author: Fluxed Matter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 28, 2015, 11:31:31 pm
content: Mine started having problems about 2 or 3 years ago. I had been ignoring it thinking it was just part of getting old now that I am over 50. Last month my Doctor sent me to the ophthalmologist to have my eyes examine. The ophthalmologist referred me to the retinal specialist. Turns out I have a membrane in my right eye. The Doctor described it as a layer of cells growing over the macula region near the fovea of my retina. This area of the eye is the part of the retina that see fine details and has the highest resolution. When I look through my right eye only everything is all waving and crooked. It's like looking at a fun house mirror at a carnival. The specialist said the membrane cause the surface of that area to bunch up and wrinkle causing a distortion.I had been thinking about lasik to correct my vision but seems I might need a more complicated surgery now.

author: PeterFW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 12:12:14 am
content: Quote from: Skimask on April 28, 2015, 07:27:29 pmIt happens rarely but when it happens, with a vengenceQuote from: Fluxed Matter on April 28, 2015, 11:31:31 pmYea, about that... i was spared (for now) to have done something like that to me.Only do light research on the subject, some surgery techniques are a bit... lets say "old timey"

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 12:14:05 am
content: I fitted new fluorescent tubes with a better color spectrum in my office. It helps a lot for doing small stuff. I'm past 40 but I can still see nearby with my regular glasses. My biggest problem is astigmatism which prevents me to focus on parallel lines or (worse) the standard X-windows woven background.

author: G0HZU
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 12:43:40 am
content: My mum has always had amazingly sharp (long) vision. Like an eagle! But sadly I developed short sight in my teens.Now that I'm well into middle age I'm suffering with the inevitable problems with any close up SMD work. But if I remove my contact lenses my near vision is still very good. I can still fully appreciate the retinal display on an ipad3 at a few inches with no lenses in. It's an amazing display!I've also had my first few scintillating scotomas in recent years. The first one was very scary as I had no idea what it was. Apart from this and the odd floater my vision is still fabulous in terms of resolution. Maybe not as good as my mum's but enough to seriously impress my optician

author: rexxar
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 05:52:27 am
content: I'm 23, and my near vision is not that great. I need a LOT of light to read chip numbers most of the time, and I need magnification to do any meaningful board inspection. I've also got some floaters, so I guess I can look forward to those getting worse in the next 30 years.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 11:39:58 am
content: I've always been nearsighted since I was in my teens, and always wore glasses for distance vision, but I could also always see the chips, leads, parts, wires and circuitry up close with my glasses on. At around 48 I started needing to take my glasses off for close up work, and had focussing issues.Now, I am 51, and I have 2 pairs of glasses. I can't stand bifocals or vari-focal (too wiggly vision). The biggest issue I hate is the focusing slowness. It can take a couple seconds for me to change from the screen to a book that is closer.I really want a bionic microscopic eye implantI'm waiting for the day ...

author: VK5RC
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 01:12:44 pm
content: 1-2D of astigmatism/cylinder in both eyes since 16yo , but unusual crossed axis, -2D of myopia, 52yo now near point now 30cm. I just put a 1D pair of el cheapo readers in front of my everyday glasses for general small work but small smd out comes the dissecting microscope.LOTS of lights in my shack.

author: Dave Turner
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 01:53:54 pm
content: I had excellent vision until about 45 when I started to need glasses for reading. My prescription has slowly become stronger. Now I also have problems for distance vision. It's getting to the stage where I'd like to have variable focus glasses rather than multiple specs like Professor Brainstorm (if anyone remembers him).To put things in context I used to easily read 4 point text and tell which way someone's hair was parted across a valley. Sadly no longer!

author: Electric flower
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 07:42:53 pm
content: My are quite unusual (astigmatism), on left eye it's perfect, but the right eye is -2.5.Things like through hole and smd 402 size i can solder with/without glasses.When i worked at mobile phone repair shop things were bit to tiny so i had to use microscope and i couldn't see shit. Because i had this problem with eyes since early childhood and it was found out pretty late my brain got used to creating picture only from one eye, and when on microscope you are supposed to make picture from looking with both eyes i actually saw most of the things with the left eye, and picture from right eye was interfering with one made by left eye.Hard contact lenses have helped me but they are too unpractical for my every day life.Note: I just noticed how my glasses dirty are when i took a pictureEdit: 18 now, 11-12 wore glasses, 12-13 wore lense,14-now im wearing glasses

author: alexanderbrevig
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 07:54:36 pm
content: I'm +1.6 and -1.5, because of this I've been an exam subject on two occasions (I also have slight astigmatism, but enough that a student should be able to detect it). So I almost present them with all of the most common 'malfunctions' :/The end result is that my brain has favored the one eye (the - one) and favors it by approximately 90%. I'm no good at catching things I cannot deduce the curve of (try catching a small coin tossed to you at an angle with only one eye!) so... yeahI wear glasses

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 29, 2015, 11:25:03 pm
content: I will be 59 this year and have been wearing glasses since the 3rd grade. Far sighted, astigmatisms in both eyes and amblyopia. I have been wearing bi-focals for the past 12-15 years (progressive). Just got my new high tech Seiko digital progressive glasses. I am still getting used to them, but I am reading things I couldn't read before. Once my eyes have fully adapted, it will be fun to see what I can read at the workbench. I also have plenty of light there.

author: Mike Warren
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 04:30:34 am
content: I used to joke that I could focus to the surface of my eyeball. Distance has always been sub-par, but just short of needing glasses. That has deteriorated very gradually to the point I need glasses for driving, but the real kicker was in my mid forties when my close vision started going.At 50, I'm now at the point where I can just read the numbers on 0805 resistors in very good light, but for much of my work I rely on various magnifying aids.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 05:01:30 am
content: Everybody who wants to protect their vision and hearing should take a number of widely available- effective anti-oxidants which really help-Alpha-lipoic acid and n-acetyl cysteine, are a good pair to start with (NAC is the precursor of glutathione- your body's natural antidote to all sorts of poisons) are a good start.. both, but especially NAC will also help protect your hearing.

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 07:47:51 am
content: Quote from: cdev on April 30, 2015, 05:01:30 amEvidence?

author: Rerouter
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 08:46:32 am
content: 23 years old, and have been short sighted since i was about 16, more recently my script has become more stable (dont know my numbers) which i believe is from all the driving i have to do from work (lots of long distance and long-close focus changes)I'm the guy at work who can solder a 25um test wire onto a tssop pin bare eyed at 8", and if i look at my finger, i can get to about 1.5" off my eye before my finger print gets blurryI mainly wear my glasses all day every day, anbd have been weighing up if laser eye surgery would actually beat the glasses, as through my glasses i have a very wide focal range

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 09:58:26 am
content: Quote from: mojo-chan on April 30, 2015, 08:33:01 amKey phrase: "The data suggest... "

author: VK5RC
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 12:36:51 pm
content: @mojochan I think mtdoc was looking for "outcome data", the first reference is an in vitro study which may offer some promise but no "whole human" data is presented in that study.In medicine what sounds plausible can often be completely incorrect. Anti-oxidants are widely touted as a good prevention for cancer (and in the form of fresh vegetables etc probably are) but a good study of Vitamin A ( a well known anti-oxidant) in heavy smokers showed it increased the risk of lung cancer. It was later realised that some of our immune cells use oxygen radicals in the immune attack which probably mop up a lot of cancers while microscopic.I would watch this area with interest but would await a good randomised placebo controlled trial (or two) published after peer review of methods etc. Safety data is also needed for long term oral use. NAC is already used short term intravenously in paracetamol overdose and in those doses is moderately unpleasant as a therapy, quite a bit of nausea but trials have shown benefit in reducing liver failure in those with high serum paracetamol levels.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 04:15:25 pm
content: Quote from: Rerouter on April 30, 2015, 08:46:32 amYou will not need glasses for 10 years, then it will hit with a vengance. As you then will have a very thin cornea after the operation if you have any accident which results in head trauma there is a good chance an eye can burst. Only fix then is to find a matching dead donor and hope you can live with the degradation that that eye already has. As well if you later want to wear contact lenses you are stuck with hard non permeable contact lenses, custom ground to fit your eye. Pop in in the morning, wear for the day and soak in a protease at night. Plus a lovely collection of eye drops.

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 04:18:55 pm
content: Quote from: mojo-chan on April 30, 2015, 08:33:01 amHa! Well , I can be pretty lazy - but generally not when it comes to looking at medical evidence.It may come as a surprise but Google is not the ultimate arbitrator of medical evidence. That search gives 15 pages of results - none of which are evidence of cdev's claims. If there's some clinical evidence of benefit I'd really like to know.As I mentioned earlier - I've had 2 retinal detachments and have a small amount of permanent vision loss in my left eye as a result. I'd sincerely be interested if his claims were true.As VK5RC rightly points out - in vitro studies can identify candidates for further animal studies which can identify candidates for clinical trials in humans -BUT they in no way constitute evidence for efficacy or even safety.I've administered NAC to several patients for acetaminophen (aka paracetamol) overdoses and inhaled nebulized form for thick pulmonary secretions. It's also given occasionally prior to administering IV contrast for radiology studies in patients with kidney disease since it has some protective effect there.All of these uses are safe but very short term and in no way suggest that they are protective for vision or hearing as cdev asserts (or safe for long term use).It's a legitimate idea that they might help. But volumes could be written on the numerous substances that in theory should be beneficial but when subjected to controlled trials (or even prospective or retrospective studies) have been found to be of no benefit or even harmful.

author: PeterFW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 04:29:42 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 30, 2015, 04:15:25 pmFirst time i heard somthing like this, can you back that up?Most times i think if people had a grasp on modern eye surgery and treatment of eye related problems they would not dream of having laser surgery.Most times it is just:"Lets throw some eye drops in there, hope it gets better and if not, though luck! Maybe we will get the stapler out and stich it back together later on."Do not get me wrong, they have gotten pretty good at keeping you from getting blind, but just that.Laser eye surgery is pretty stupid if you do it for convenience, vanity or because it is cool.If you have glasses like coke bottle bottoms and can not see your own hand infront your face, shure!But not just because you are too lazy to wear glasses...

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 04:56:54 pm
content: My nephew had it done, and almost on the dot of 10 years he needs glasses, and his prescription is now very unstable, with him also needing eye drops regularly.As to me I asked my optometrist when I went and got my test this month, and he also agrees that it is great for massive corrections, with a thick cornea to get it down to a thinner one, and to shape the lens to get the corrective lens down to something that you can do in glass or polycarbonate without having to use an ultra high refractive index lens just to get the mass below 100g.My script is in Transitions II, expensive ( and i paid for it) but cheaper than the V3 now available. Got the lens down to under 5mm thick, if I had to get glass lenses I took the set he made with the setup frame, and those came to around 100g for the glass lens alone. I would need to have 2 titanium pins put in my forehead to hold that lot. Took the photochromic option as well, and the scratch proof coating as well. This holds up well, I barely have any damage on the old lenses, and I use glasses full time, and work in dusty, dirty and messy machinery. Plus they also act as some protection against eye damage. the frames fell apart from wear, and are no longer made. I must order a spare frame next time I see him this weekend.

author: PeterFW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 05:00:21 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 30, 2015, 04:56:54 pmOne last thing on the subject... went to 6 or so different optometrists, a decent number of them had glasses.I wonder why, if laser eye surgery is supposed to be so awesome

author: ABroodryk
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 06:04:29 pm
content: I used to be -2.75 both eyes wearing glasses/contacts for everything but I would recommend Ortho-Khttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OrthokeratologyNow back to better than 20/20 and only lenses when sleeping... Definitely the best option for less than -5...

author: V8Dieselpower
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 06:56:30 pm
content: Always had superb vision up till a couple of years ago when I started needing reading glasses for small print etc. Just the norm for approaching 50.

author: Zbig
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 08:19:28 pm
content: How's my what now?!I'm sorry, but someone just had to do this

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 30, 2015, 09:50:43 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 30, 2015, 04:15:25 pmI have severe dry eyes and belong to a dry eye forum with hundreds of members........a good percentage of them contracted dry eyes from laser surgery........it's a known side effect. Apparently the laser surgery can affect nerve cells and the brain then has trouble dispensing tears and oils via glands.......or something like that. You do NOT want dry eyes......believe me!Note. I have not had laser surgery.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 01:15:03 am
content: Would anybody mind if I posted some references from medical journals to back up what i said earlier?Unfortunately, PubMed.gov 's coverage is spotty before the mid to late 1990s- basically thats when the effort to put papers online really began in earnest.. So it would be missing a lot of the earlier stuff.The problem with a lot of people's way of looking at medicine is that they don't or arent willing to spend the time to really explore a subject deeply and instead they attempt to generalize but in the wrong way. They may have some opinion and then they try to verify that pinion instead of building up a body of data points over time. In my case I stated investigating this stuff when I was a teenager - long before I had a university library to read papers in. So ive been following it for 40 years..many people miss a lot. the fact is, the eye is perhaps the organ in the body that has the most parts, and many of them can be impacted by various conditions and exposures and changes related to aging.. But, a lot of things can be helpful. the oxidative stress theory of aging is just one of many models we use to try to understand aging but its still one of the most frequently used, no one is "right" to the exclusion of others..Does this all make sense to people?Since the eues are both made up of physical structures as well as CNS related structures/functionality.. (both the eyes and nasal structures stand sort of on the threshold of the brain) that makes their interaction very important and complicated..To glean information, read up on neurodegeneration/neuroprotection of various kinds, vascular issues, formation of advanced glycation end products, various diseases that impact eyes like diabetes and glaucoma, immune system issues and issues relating to immunosenescence, heavy metal exposures (lead) and strategies to try to ameliorate the effects of same in various ways (glutathione, chelation..- Other issues with eyes are related to the lens, the clarity of the lens. another big area is light exposure (especially blue light) and UV exposure.. (NAC is better for the second than the first) There really are several dozen well known substances that can protect the eyes but a good strategy is more complex than a simple more is better approach, for example, many antioxidants have an effective range and in very large amounts they swing towards being pro-oxidant.. Some well known eye nutrients can actually be toxic in large doses as well.. With all that said, it really pays to do some reading and learn the basics about how these various systems in the body can be protected.. very basic stuff. It is real and the science is extensive and goes back many decades. A lot of people are in denial but they usually are people who have not spent any quality time investigating the issues - often they have a pre-decided point of view and they get angry when confronted with the fact that they might be wrong. .

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 01:32:16 am
content: One nutrient which is extremely good for the eyes is carnosine.. an amino acid based substance which is made from beta-alanine (thats the rate limiting precursor) and histidine.Topical carnosine can restore the clarity of the lens. The problem is, somebody has to be quite skilled in the exact amount of carnosine, salt, pure distilled water and buffer..(bicarbonate) and to keep it clean is ultra important.So its not recommended unless you are willing to do more than the average person.I have to say, it really did miracles for me when I was put in really a horrible situation. If somebody had an older dog who was losing its eyesight, they mght want to ask their vet about it.. lok up carnosine in PubMed, it will give you the important info on concentration. There are commercial eye drops that use a similar compound, but they are wildly expensive. It would probably be cheaper to pay a compounding pharmacist to make a bunch of eye droppers for you and freeze them.

author: aargee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 07:03:42 am
content: I've been short sighted all my life, the good thing at my age now is that when other people go searching for their reading glasses, I just take mine off. No need for reading glasses as the eyeballs are pre-tuned.

author: Red Squirrel
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 07:13:23 am
content: I was legally blind for a while, and it just dawned on me, I was sick of wearing glasses. Always getting dirty, seeing reflections, always getting dirty, specs of dust in them all the time, smuges from accidentally touching them, always getting dirty... did I mention always getting dirty? It brought me to the point of insanity, I was constantly cleaning them and it was never enough, always something left over. I decided to get LASIK last summer and it's the best thing I ever done and now I'm 20/20 in both eyes. I'm super squeamish when it comes to eyes so it took me quite a lot of courage to get it done, and it was not fun to go through but it was so fast I'd do it again if I had to. Now I can see far without issues, and still see near as well. I've been told by the time I hit 40 I'll probably need reading glasses though. I hope not, but at least it will only be for seeing close so not like I'll HAVE to have them on all the time.

author: ElectroNub
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 07:40:01 am
content: I'm 46. I started wearing glasses about 3 years ago because I can't read text on signs until I already passed the street I was supposed to turn on!I got reading glasses last year for working up close. Was never really a problem before. I also use a lot of magnifiers now too.It seems I am due for a new set of glasses. These ones don't work as well as they used to.Cleaning them is a pain...If I was born blind I would not have to deal with this stupid handicap!

author: Rerouter
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 08:02:37 am
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 30, 2015, 04:15:25 pmThank you very much sean, its not so much about laziness of not wearing glasses, it was more curiousity why such a procedure was so quiet when they boast such sucess in there advertisements, and its like walking a mine-field the second you try and look at a pro/con of a procedure online, so while it as on topic was nice to hear some feedback from a source i trust,

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 08:45:23 am
content: I asked, and am not a candidate, even though the one eye would benefit ( but it is close to perfect in any case) the other eye would not, as there they **might** get the script half way to normal without blowing a hole in the cornea, or burning the lens. You will still need glasses so only for those few who will benefit from the slight correction for the present. If you only need 0.5 or less then you are a candidate, otherwise not.Iqbaul my optometrist also wears glasses, and if LASIK worked he would have it done, but his living depends on him having good vision.

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 01, 2015, 04:51:50 pm
content: Lasik does work and works well to correct Myopia (near sightedness). But like any medical procedure there are risks, possible side effects and not everyone is a candidate.It does nothing to treat presbyopia - the difficulty with focusing on near objects that comes with age. If your optometrist is over 40 and wearing glasses at work it may be for this reason.Also, when you're over 45 and you're myopic, you can usually still focus on near objects by taking off your glasses. You lose this once you get Lasik.

author: ABroodryk
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: May 02, 2015, 08:06:39 am
content: I can understand why some people will opt for the Lasik and it has its place. I've even looked into it and my dad had it done about 15 years ago but there is the problem with night sight issues and to be honest I prefer something reversible.If you are tired of cleaning your glasses or wearing contact lenses during the day its worth looking into orthio-k lenses. I've been using them for 5 years now and I will never go backThere is also no dry eye issue like you get when wearing contacts and working on computer screens as we all do these days. The best part is you can't loose a contact while enjoying sports.I do apologies if it seems I'mon about it but it was a life changer

author: lapm
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 02, 2015, 11:18:56 am
content: Im 40 and finally got myself one of those magnifier headband thingies.. My eyesight is still perfect but eyes get tired more easily now when looking at small smd stuff. Hence i got magnification to help. Throwhole stuff im still fine without any gadgets..