forward

2020 – Looking back and looking forward

Having practiced as an optometrist for over 40 years I have literally seen did not allow us to diagnose or treat certain vision anomalies. many changes in our approach to vision and eye care for people of all Now — Diagnosing and treating most eye conditions have advanced sigages. I’d like to share a few tidbits of what I have learned. nifi cantly. Lasers are miraculous tools to solve many vision problems. In 10

Frames: seconds we can correct vision anomalies with Lasik. Other lasers are used to

Then — Frame designs in the 1980s found people wearing huge glasses. treat glaucoma and retinal issues. Cataract surgery takes just 5-7 minutes It is ironic that as the glasses got bigger ... the skirt and has a nearly perfect success rate. Many forms of macular degeneration lengths got shorter. can be treated with antioxidant vitamins and lutein. Stem cell research offers

Guest Now — Over the past 10 years frames weigh half the possibility of restoring vision that has been permanently lost. Telescopic

Columnist as much and are twice as durable. They are made of implants are being developed to help those with severe vision loss to see lightweight titanium and some are adorned with exotic again. And more is yet to come. woods and Swarovski Crystals. Nutrition: Lenses: Then — Other than telling our patients to “eat your carrots” we really Then — Lenses were primarily made out of tem- didn’t know how much nutrition and lifestyle played into ocular health. pered glass. And although they rarely got scratched Now — We know so much more about the benefi ts of good nutrition and you had to have a nose made out of steel to support the lifestyle in supporting our overall visual health. Smoking can increase the weight. likelihood of blindness from macular degeneration by 300%. Leafy green vegeNow — Lenses are much lighter weight and are tables such as kale and spinach are especially benefi cial for overall eye health. much more impact resistant than the heavy glasses Omega-3 fatty acids provide help against dry macular degeneration as well as lenses. They are made out of materials that rarely re- dry eyes. And more is yet to come. Dr. Rex semble the “coke bottle” lenses of the past. UV protec- A love for people and a passion for great vision:Eland tion from harmful light is a standard issue in most all So why do I love what I am doing more than ever? Think about it ... I get to lenses. help people with a gift that is second only to life itself ... and that is to see this Multifocals: big beautiful world that the good Lord has given us.

Then — Most people in their 40s suffer from something called “short arm With all the technology we have available, we constantly remind each other syndrome” (i.e., your eyes are getting older). Years ago your age was high- as a staff the most important part of our practice ... and that is people. Allighted by lined bifocals. though eye issues bring people into our offi ce, I am blessed to have a staff that

Now — 90% of the “short arm” population wears lenses without lines called is more concerned about the person who brings those eyeballs in to be examprogressive lenses, which comfortably provide vision at all ranges without ined. We prefer taking some extra time to get to know each person and their lines. vision needs. Listening leads to better solutions.

Computers: It is a privilege to come into my offi ce every day. We love people. And we

Then — We simply looked down at sheets of paper strewn all over our love to take care of their vision needs. Dr. Corey Pratt and I welcome you into desks and punched the buttons on an adding machine that had over 100 keys Berthoud Vision for Life! We accept many insurances and are conveniently and a hand crank. located just south of Adams Bank on Berthoud Parkway. See you soon.

Now — Computers are almost as commonplace in homes as tv’s. Looking at a monitor creates more strain than a piece of paper and requires a blue fi lter to reduce eyestrain. Special “computer glasses” are designed to provide clear and comfortable vision without getting a pain in the neck. We spend about 7-10 hours per day staring at electronic devices. With all this time spent looking at electronic media, it is critical for us to follow the 20/20/20 rule, which is “every 20 minutes take a 20-second break and look at least 20 feet away.” This allows the eye muscles to stretch and become more refreshed.

Contact lenses:

Then — You had to have “eyes of steel” to wear most of the hard contact lenses.

Now — Comfortable soft contact lenses can now correct all vision problems including astigmatism and “short arm syndrome.” Yep ... they can correct your far and near vision.

Eye diseases:

Then — We knew some things about some eye diseases, but the technology

$37 in the 80513 zip code , $47 elsewhere.