October is National Pizza month. Why wouldn’t we write a whole article about it? Anything else would feel like a missed opportunity. So let’s bite right into it. Pizzas are a big deal all over the world, which is clearly evident due to the random facts about pizzas we don’t really need to know. Statistics reveal that Americans eat 350 slices of pizza every second. Statistics also reveal that the majority of statistics are about America, and tend to ignore the rest of the world. So how much pizza is eaten in South Africa? We can only guess. Speaking of the world, there are conflicting reports as to its origin. Egyptians and Ancient Greeks were eating “a type of flat bread” long before delivery guys brought pizza boxes to your door. But it seems tomatoes sealed the deal. Because it was only when people in Naples started adding tomatoes that the pizza is said to have been born. According to more statistics that need to be verified and don’t represent the entire world, the most popular pizza topping is pepperoni. Except if you’re in India, where another study has revealed that the most popular topping is tofu. And while October has everyone talking about the latest US presidential debate, the real debate has been raging for decades. You know the one… whether or not pineapple belongs on a pizza. Let’s not even get into it. Strangely enough, Hawaiian pizza (pineapple included) was invented in Canada. No, not strange because Canada isn’t...

      Diabetes is a chronic disease in which the body does not effectively process blood sugar. Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood glucose and delivers it to the cells all over the body. With diabetes, the body either does not produce or does not respond effectively to insulin, leading to high levels of glucose or sugar in the bloodstream, which in turn can lead to damage to the blood vessels and nerves throughout the body. The eyes are particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in blood sugar levels, increasing the risk of a variety of eye problems. Over time, changes occur in the tiny blood vessels in the retina at the back of the eye, making it harder for the blood to flow and causing the blood vessels to become blocked, bleed or leak fluid. The longer a person has diabetes, the more likely they are to develop diabetic eye disease, a group of eye conditions caused by high blood sugar levels. The risk is significantly reduced if blood sugar levels are controlled, and the impact on vision decreases if the problem is detected and managed early. It is important for people with diabetes to have regular comprehensive eye examinations as there are often no early symptoms, but signs of eye disease can be noticed by an optometrist before it has progressed, and symptoms become apparent. Early detection and treatment can help protect vision. DIABETIC RETINOPATHY       Diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of vision loss in...

Night blindness, nyctalopia, is a condition which makes it difficult to see well at night or in poor or low light conditions. Although night blindness adversely affects a person’s ability to see in dim light or take longer than usual to adapt from light to dark settings, it does not cause complete blindness. It is not a vision condition itself but is rather a symptom of another problem or the result of an existing vision disorder. Because it reduces vision, it can significantly impact quality of life and can be a source of fear and anxiety for those affected by it. WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF NIGHT BLINDNESS? The main symptoms of night blindness are difficulty seeing in the dark, trouble adjusting when moving from a bright environment to an area of low light or increasing problems when driving at night due to the intermittent brightness of headlights and streetlights. It may be challenging to move around the house in dim light and is sometimes difficult to recognise faces in low light conditions. Other symptoms that may occur depend on the underlying cause of the condition, and may include headaches, eye strain, blurry vision, sensitivity to light and difficulty with distance vision. WHAT CAUSES NIGHT BLINDNESS?       Night blindness is a symptom of an underlying eye condition that results in vision impairment while in dim lighting. A wide range of conditions makes it hard to see at night. One of the early symptoms of cataracts is often night blindness,...

World Sight Day, observed globally on the second Thursday of October every year, is dedicated to raising awareness about vision impairment, blindness and eye health. It focuses the world’s attention on the importance of eye care and strives to inspire everyone, at every age and every stage, to ‘Love Your Eyes’. The theme for 2024, ‘Love Your Eyes – Kids’, emphasises the importance of eye care in young people, inspiring children everywhere to love their eyes and helping to create a world where every child has eye health that is accessible, available and affordable’.       World Sight Day was established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) to raise awareness about vision impairment and blindness. It first took place in 1998, became an official event in 2000 and has since become a global initiative supported by various organisations, governments and eye care professionals worldwide. Since its inception, World Sight Day has played a significant role in advocating for eye health, reducing preventable blindness, and improving access to quality eye care services. Recognising that early intervention and regular eye health monitoring is critical to unlocking education opportunities and future economic potential, “we campaign to ensure that children not only understand the importance of caring for their eye health but are also free from the weight of any social stigma associated with wearing glasses and other corrective treatments. Starting with a groundswell of young people who are inspired to make their vision...

When do you need to wear glasses? Indoors? For outdoor activities? At the computer? For reading? For driving, day or night? For sport? For watching TV? We all have different visual needs and with the variety of lens coatings available, it is possible to cater for everyone’s unique lifestyle, visual habits, personal preferences and budget. Being faced with too many choices can be confusing, but with an understanding of lens coatings and the guidance of your optometrist the right decision for your specific needs can be made. ANTI-REFLECTIVE COATING       Anti-reflective coatings comprise many different thin layers of coating applied to the front and back of lenses to reduce glare from different wavelengths of light. By reducing unwanted reflections from the lens surfaces, more light is transmitted through the lens, making vision clearer and minimising eye strain. Reflections from the lenses of glasses make it difficult to see the wearer’s eyes, but with an anti-reflective coating, the wearer’s eyes are visible and look more natural. This coating is particularly beneficial for people who drive at night and find reflections from headlights and streetlights uncomfortable. Anti-reflective coatings can show smudges more readily than uncoated lenses so should be cleaned regularly with a soft cloth. SCRATCH-RESISTANT COATING       As well as affecting the ability to see clearly and causing eye strain, scratched lenses can reduce the life of the lenses. Plastic lenses are more prone to scratching than glass lenses, and many plastic lenses contain a built-in scratch resistant...

Myopia, short-sightedness, is a common eye disorder that causes blurred distance vision. It typically starts in children around the age of 10 years, deteriorating until the late teens or early twenties when it stabilises. There is growing concern worldwide around the alarming increase of myopia and its rapid progression, affecting quality of life, increasing eye health risks and posing a threat to the future visual health of children.       In children, the eyes are meant to grow steadily until the teenage years, then stabilise. With myopia, the eye is longer than normal from front to back, or the cornea is too steeply curved. Myopia progression is the ongoing deterioration of vision caused by the eyes growing too quickly and too long for the normal rate of eye growth. Research suggests that children who spend long periods of time indoors doing near-focused activities, such as computer work, video games, and reading, have higher rates of myopia than those who spend more time outdoors. Even after a childhood of normal vision, young adults can suffer myopia progression, albeit at a slower rate than children and teenagers. Myopia progression brings with it increasingly blurred vision, the need for frequent changes in glasses or contact lens prescription and an increased risk of eye diseases and vision problems over a person’s lifetime. Earlier onset of myopia can lead to a higher degree of myopia, a faster rate of progression and an earlier onset of eye diseases typically associated with adults, such as cataracts, glaucoma,...

In a world where sight is often taken for granted, there are extraordinary individuals who have transcended their visual impairments to leave an indelible mark on those around them. Their stories remind us that true vision extends beyond physical sight and that blindness is not necessarily a barrier to achieving a dream. Life as a visually impaired individual is filled with unique challenges, but it may also encompass perseverance, unwavering determination and an example of the indomitable human spirit. ERIK WEIHENMAYER “Adversity alone has the unique power to inspire exceptional clarity, purge any vestiges of lethargy, refocus your priorities, hone your character, and unleash your most potent forces.” (“The Adversity Advantage: Turning Everyday Struggles into Everyday Greatness”)       Erik Weihenmayer was born with Retinoschisis, a condition in which the retina separates into two layers, resulting in poor vision. He lost his sight completely at the age of 13, but this did little to quell his ambition. Erik has spent his whole life overcoming seemingly impossible challenges to become one of the most accomplished adventurers in the world. In 2001 he was the first and only blind man to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He has made other remarkable ascents, including the Seven Summits, the highest mountain on each of the seven continents, a feat which only 118 others in the world have achieved. Along with a taste for adventure, Erik is involved in various charities for the visually impaired. He co-founded No Barriers USA, which aims to aid...

As we move into Women’s Month, we celebrate the female heroes and pioneers who continue to change the world in so many ways. And while we’re at it, let’s see what might have happened if major moments in history had had a feminine touch... When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, the first words he uttered on the device were: “Mr. Watson, come here. I want to see you.” One wonders whether a woman might have put more emotion and enthusiasm into that historic moment. Also, studies show that women on average speak 20 000 words a day - 13 000 more than men. So a woman might have used a few more words to summon Mr. Watson. An adjective here or there, maybe. Or an adverb. On that note, who invented the WhatsApp group? You know, the one for the soccer league and the bowls club and the old school boys and the cycling group... Don’t think a woman invented those. And who invented the jokes that get shared on those groups? Probably the men who laugh at them... and then share and share and share them. Speaking of inventors, where would we be without Thomas Edison’s invention of the light bulb? We’d be without light for hours on end until... oh, wait a minute. Let’s stop right there. Loadshedding jokes aside though, we celebrate Edison for his ingenuity. But I can’t help thinking that, if a woman had invented the light bulb, she also would have invented something so...

The Effects of Depression on Vision When we think of depression, we think of its emotional symptoms, such as sadness and loss of interest in activities, but the impact of depression goes beyond the emotions. Severe depression is associated with biological changes in the body that influence various functions, including vision. New research suggests that depressed people literally view the world differently, that visual information is processed differently. As one study expressed it, “they see the world in grey”. It is not clear if these visual changes are related to how the eyes take in visual information or how the brain interprets the visual information. Depression activates the body’s stress response system, which can lead to physiological changes and disruption of normal processes such as tear production. Neurological changes can alter the way the brain processes information leading to visual disturbances such as blurred vision and focusing difficulties. Depression can heighten sensory sensitivity, making normal light levels feel harsh and uncomfortable. Pupil dilation, which is part of the nervous system’s response to stress or excitement, is reduced in people with depression. VISUAL PERCEPTION AND DEPRESSION       One of the primary ways that depression affects vision is through altered visual perception. Research has shown that individuals with depression may experience changes in contrast sensitivity, colour perception, and spatial processing. Reduced contrast sensitivity makes it difficult to perceive differences in shades and brightness, which can lead to difficulties in everyday tasks such as reading, night driving or locating objects on a...

The eye is a highly specialised complex sensory organ which contains many structures to enable vision. Light enters the eye through the pupil, is focused by the lens and lands at the back of the eye on the retina which contains millions of light-sensitive receptor cells as well as other nerve cells that receive and organise visual information. The light is converted into electrical impulses which travel via the optic nerve to the brain where they are processed and interpreted. The two primary photoreceptor cells are the rods and cones. Rods, which are responsible for black and white vision, are generally situated around the edges of the retina. They can detect the lowest amounts of light, allowing people to see at night. Cones are present in the macula, the central part of the retina, and help people distinguish colours and see in typical light conditions. There are different types of cones, depending on the colour to which they are sensitive. Retinal disorders are conditions that can affect any part of the retina. They vary widely, but most of them cause visual symptoms. Some may mildly affect a person’s vision, while others can cause severe vision loss or blindness. Anything that affects the retina should be taken seriously since with some conditions vision cannot be restored once it has been lost. Depending on the specific condition, treatment is available, the goal of which may be to stop or slow down its progression. The earlier the condition is detected, the better the long-term...