The importance of eye tests this World Sight Day

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EXPERTS are reminding people of the importance of regular eye tests to support World Sight Day (10 October) and sharing the connection between diabetes and vision loss.

The advice comes from Specsavers Ópticas on the Costa Blanca as part of their awareness raising activities for the research charity DiabetesCERO. Chantelle Hayward from Specsavers Ópticas in Calpe explains that many people with diabetes do not get any symptoms, which means it can take up to 10 years before they are diagnosed¹. However, if it is left untreated it can cause damage to the eyes, heart, kidneys, and feet.
Chantelle explains: ‘14.8% of adults in Spain are living with diabetes, over 5 million people². Almost 1 in 2 adults (44%) with diabetes remain undiagnosed³. This means that worldwide there are 240 million people who are at risk of developing serious eye health complications and even sight loss.
‘Diabetes is one of the fastest growing health conditions today – fuelled by record levels of obesity, excessive sugar consumption and sedentary lifestyles. If we continue to ignore the risk of developing type 2 diabetes as a result, we can only expect to see the number of cases escalate.’
Around 1 in 3 people with diabetes develop some form of eye health complication, according to the International Diabetes Foundation (IDF)⁴.
How diabetes affects your eyes
A complication of diabetes is diabetic retinopathy, which can occur when high blood sugar levels damage the blood vessels in the back of the eye. If left untreated it can cause blindness.
Chantelle adds: ‘Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading causes of preventable blindness in working age adults, even in developed countries⁵, so it’s hugely important that diabetes is detected early and monitored correctly to minimise the risk of avoidable sight loss.
‘The connection between diabetes and sight loss has led us to choose the charity DiabetesCERO as our official charity for 2024. We’ve pledged to raise €5,000 for the charity in 2024 and want to educate and inform people in our community about the link between diabetes and vision loss. We encourage anyone with diabetes to ensure they carefully manage glucose levels to prevent health complications. They should also have regular eye tests, including the latest technology, to check the health of the eyes and identify any nerve damage early, before it affects their vision.’

There are collection tins in all nine Specsavers Ópticas stores in Spain, where donations can be made to help fund vital research into Type 1 Diabetes. To find your nearest store to donate, visit www.specsavers.es

¹https://www.diabetes.org.uk/diabetes-the-basics/what-is-type-2-diabetes
²https://idf.org/our-network/regions-members/europe/members/159-spain.html
³https://worlddiabetesday.org/about/facts-figures/
⁴https://idf.org/news/99:idf-and-leading-eye-health-organizations-call-for-urgent-action-to-address-diabetic-eye-disease.html
⁵https://idf.org/our-network/regions-members/europe/europe-news/72:12-october-world-sight-day.html