Inflammation and Diabetic Retinopathy
At Natural Eye Care, we know that eye conditions are often related to diseases that affect the entire body. At a conference last year, Clement Trempe, MD reminded colleagues to consider the role of overall inflammation when diagnosing patients with diabetic retinopathy.
According to Dr. Trempe, “Diabetic retinopathy is not an eye disease, but part of a chronic systemic inflammatory disease process that shares the same risk factors and elevated biomarkers associated with coronary vascular and neurodegenerative diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma and Alzheimer’s.”
In line with our way of thinking, Dr. Trempe recommended prevention (see our “recommendations“). The doctor also emphasized the importance of proper diet, lifestyle, and nutrition (see our self-help recommendations and supplement tips).
Source: PCON Supersite March 1, 2010
Insulin May Not Address Inflammation Problems
Insulin replacement is the main treatment for people with Type 1 diabetes. A new study seeks to determine how the eyes are not helped through insulin therapies.
In a study of rodents’ retinas that appeared in BMC Medical Genomics, researchers investigated the effect of insulin on the eyes over a 1.5 year period. This genome-level research showed that though insulin normalizes genes that have been impaired due to diabetes, the insulin therapies are not completely effective when it comes to helping inflammatory processes, microvascular integrity, and neuronal function. Source: https://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcmedgenomics/
See further information on scientific studies related to diabetic retinopathy.