QUESTIONS:
1. Taking half the dosage of high dose macular degeneration supplements per day has some benefit, but not as much as taking the full dose. TRUE OR FALSE
2. Centrum Silver has many more vitamins in it than high dose macular degeneration supplements and so is probably more effective against eye disease. TRUE OR FALSE.
3. The benefits of taking vitamin supplements for macular degeneration are usually seen by one month. TRUE OR FALSE.
4. Only the 'wet' form of macular degeneration can cause severe vision loss. TRUE OR FALSE.
5. The carotenoids Lutein and Zeaxanthin were not included in the National Eye Institute's Age Related Eye Disease Study because they were not shown to be beneficial. TRUE OR FALSE.
6. The high doses of beta-carotene in macular degeneration supplements can cause osteoporosis and has been linked to increased frequency of hip fractures in women. TRUE OR FALSE.
7. While the high level of Vitamin E in macular degeneration supplements was found to be beneficial to ocular health, it was also shown to increase cardiac events and reduce lifespan. TRUE OR FALSE.
There is no successful treatment for wet macular degeneration. TRUE OR FALSE
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DISCUSSION
Being diagnosed with macular degeneration can be frightening. Often occurring at the stage of life in which you have lesser mobility and hearing sensitivity, vision becomes a critical connection to the world around you.
However, many cases of macular degeneration are mild, and with proper nutritional support and exciting new treatments, vision is often preserved. In some cases, vision may actually improve!
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ANSWERS TO QUIZ QUESTIONS
1. FALSE. Many studies prior the National Eye Institute's Age Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) which was published in 2001, looked at nutritional supplementation in preventing the progression of macular degeneration. Prior to AREDS, no study was able to show benefit. What made AREDS unique was that the DOSAGES of antioxidants and zinc were significantly higher than had been previously used. AREDS therefore showed that there is a CRITICAL MINIMUM AMOUNT of nutrients required to positively impact eye disease. There is NO DATA to support the fact that taking half the recommended regimen of high dose macular degeneration supplements is effective.
2. FALSE. Centrum Silver has many nutrients in each tablet. However, the AMOUNT of each element is too low to be effective. In patients in the National Eye Institute's AREDS study, those patients that took Centrum Silver with a placebo rather than a powerful antioxidant and mineral supplement did not experience any benefit for their macular degeneration.
3. FALSE. The National Eye Institute's Age Related Eye Disease Study was carried on for several years before benefits were proven. Our current recommendation is to take your macular degeneration formula for a minimum of six months before making any conclusions as to it success. If your macular degeneration stabilizes or your vision improves, you should continue to take high dose macular degeneration supplements indefinitely.
4. FALSE. Certain forms of dry macular degeneration, including geographic atrophy and central drusen, can cause severe central vision loss. Dry macular degeneration can be slowed down and vision can sometimes even be improved with macular degeneration vitamin supplements. Because there are no current treatments for dry macular degeneration, it is vitally important to take preventive nutritional supplementation.
5. FALSE. Carotenoids include the beta-carotene form of Vitamin A, Lutein and Zeaxanthin, among others. The National Eye Institute did not include Lutein or Zeaxanthin in the Age Related Eye Disease Study because neither of them was available in commercial form. However, the benefits of each of these compounds have since been proven in many scientific studies. Therefore, the National Eye Institute is including both compounds in the AREDS2 Study, which will run for several years.
6. FALSE. Harvard researchers found an increased rate of hip fractures in post-menopausal women with increased RETINOL, or Vitamin A ingestion. However, beta-carotene is not Vitamin A itself, but rather a precursor form of the molecule. Harvard explicitly states that beta-carotene is SAFE for non-smokers and to seek out vitamin supplements that use this safe form rather than RETINOL.
7. FALSE. There are many studies on the effects of Vitamin E. But the study that matters most is the National Eye Institute's Age Related Eye Disease Study, which found a LOWER incidence of cardiac related death in patients receiving the AREDS supplements which included 400 IU of Vitamin E. Importantly, not all Vitamin E is created equally. Many large manufacturers use the less expensive synthetic Vitamin E, which will be identified on the label as 'DL-ALPHA' tocopherol. Natural Vitamin E, which is identified as 'D-ALPHA' tocopherol, is derived from natural vegetable oils, and is generally regarded as both safer and more effective.
8. FALSE. Previously untreatable except by direct laser burns which treated the wet macular degeneration lesion but caused an immediate loss of vision, wet macular degeneration is now a treatable disease, thanks to the efforts of pharmacologic research. Most of the promising work is focusing on medications that are injected directly into the eye, including Macugen, Avastin and Lucentis. Only Macugen and Lucentis are approved by the FDA. However, both Avastin and Lucentis have been shown to improve vision in patients with wet macular degeneration. |
