When the eyes natural lens becomes clouded with clumped up proteins then you are developing cataracts. These clumped proteins block light from entering the eye, which causes your vision to become increasingly blurrier over time and if left unresolved will result in the complete loss of your vision.

Clouded lenses will negatively impact your quality of life because you will be unable to drive, read, or do many other things that you would regularly do.

Cataracts typically develop pretty slowly and in the beginning, you likely will not even notice a difference in your vision. Over time, however, your sight will begin to get worse. Interestingly, there are times during the cataract development phase where your vision might even appear to be clearer, but if this happens it will likely only be for a short amount of time.

In the beginning, you can counteract the negative effects to your vision from cataracts with good lighting and prescription glasses, but you will need to eventually undergo a cataract surgery to completely remove the effects of cataracts from your vision. If not removed, the cataract will only grow larger and continue to cloud your vision worse and worse until your lens is completely blocked by proteins and you will no longer be able to see.

When should you call your eye doctor?

The only real way to cataracts early is by having routine eye exams with a trained eye doctor. Only a professional eye doctor can ensure your eyes remain in tip top shape and detect cataracts. If you experience a rapid decline in vision then you should immediately consult your eye care doctor and schedule an eye exam as this could be indicative of cataracts or other possible eye disease that requires medical attention.

Cataracts occur when the eyes natural lens becomes clouded with clumped up proteins. These proteins block light as it enters your eye which causes your vision to become gradually more blurry and if left unchecked could result in complete loss of vision.

These clouded lenses negatively impact your quality of life by making it difficult to read or drive a car—particularly when you are driving at night—among many other things.

Cataracts for the most part develop very slowly, in the beginning of your cataract development you wont even be able to notice a difference in your vision, but over time your sight will get worse. Oddly, with cataracts there is a point where your vision will become much better, but this is very brief and then the quality of your sight will drop dramatically.

You will be able to counteract the negative effects cataracts have on your vision at first with proper lighting and strong eyeglasses, but eventually you will need to undergo cataract surgery to assure you don’t go blind and maintain a good quality of life. If not removed, the cataract will continue to grow larger and cloud more and more of your eyes natural lens.

When is a good time to call my eye doctor?

Well, the best way to catch cataracts early is to schedule your routine eye exams so your eye doctor can take a look and ensure your eyes are in tip top shape. If you notice a sudden dramatic slip in vision however you should consult your eye doctor immediately.