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Diabetes can silently harm your eyes before you even notice a problem. High blood sugar levels can damage the tiny blood vessels in your retina, leading to diabetic retinopathy and other vision problems. The tricky part is that early diabetic eye disease often has no symptoms until it becomes serious. That’s why paying attention to subtle changes in your vision is so important. Here are five early signs you should never ignore.
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An escalated level of blood sugar may result in a change of fluid in the eye and cause either blurred or varying vision. Although this appears to be a temporary condition, blurred vision that is persistent may be among the early signs of prediabetes and cannot be overlooked.
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The small and dark or grey dots, the strands or the cobweb-like some hairs floating in your vision are termed as 'floaters'. They may be present in diabetic eye disease, where blood vessels that have been damaged leak fluid into the eye or bleed. They can point out the onset of vitreous haemorrhage, which is a dangerous complication that needs immediate treatment.
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Signs of early retinal damage may be noticing that you can barely see at night or require more light when reading. There may be an impact on the retina of adapting to low light in diabetes, thus making it difficult to recognise anything in low light. This may be an indication of early diabetic retinopathy or cataracts, both of which are more prevalent in individuals who have diabetes.
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One day you feel that you are seeing perfectly, and then the next day, it is blurred again, and the same scenario continues. This is mostly associated with blood sugar fluctuations, which create instability in the shape of the lens of your eye. Although this may appear to be harmless, frequent changes can exert pressure on your eyes and indicate underlying eye damage to the retina.
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If parts of your vision suddenly go missing, or you notice dark or empty areas in your sight, it could mean that certain regions of your retina aren’t getting enough blood supply. This can progress quickly and, if left untreated, may lead to permanent vision loss.
