Machine explanations, Part 2

Commentary by Dr. Kim Hall

Let’s continue our series exploring the instruments you may encounter in the pretest room at your optometrist’s office.

Vision

These next two instruments have been around in some form or fashion for years, but they are also evolving.

The visual field is that test where you press a handheld clicker whenever you see the squiggle (frequency change) in your side vision, or an actual light, depending on the machine. Here, we are testing how far out, and at what sensitivity, you can see a visual stimulus without moving your eye.

This is the quintessential test for not only glaucoma, but other conditions such as brain tumors, brain injuries, stroke, medicine toxicity and more. It can be tedious to test, and scary to know what it is looking for, but new advances are making it fun, easier and faster.

You can expect to start running into a super cool yet still super accurate, virtual-reality headset version of this in the near future! It’s a far cry from the old days when we used a giant bowl and the technician had to stand behind it and manually move a target, requiring tons of time, coordination and skill.

Everyone loves a good snapshot of their eyeballs, right? Retinal cameras have come a long way, but you will still notice a bright camera flash. If you are asked to smash your face against a giant machine, it is called the Optomap. You may not enjoy the quick flash but be thankful for it. Getting that close to the camera face allows a much larger field of view, much like how the closer you get to the keyhole of a door, the more you can see of what is on the other side.

With Optos, we can view up to 200 degrees of the inside of your eye, which is quite impressive! This technology allows a thorough examination without having to use the dreaded dilating drops in most cases. Your day should not be ruined by an annual eye exam!

Dr. Kim Hall is an optometrist at RevolutionEYES. She graduated from Purdue University in 1999 and the Indiana University School of Optometry in 2005.

Are GMOs unsafe? — There’s a lot of hype surrounding GMOs (genetically modified organisms). A team of 50 scientists reviewed more than 900 studie in the 20 years since GMOs were first introduced. They found that GMOs have not caused increases in cancer, obesity, gastrointestinal illnesses, kidney disease, autism, or allergies.

Source: MSN.com

Sudden paranoia — If someone you know has become suddenly paranoid, there are several possible causes. Dementia may be one cause, but there are other, treatable conditions that can cause paranoia. It also can be caused by certain medications. So, if someone begins acting paranoid, urge them to see a doctor quickly to determine the cause.

Source: BottomLineInc.

Fiber to fight diabetes — New research shows that people who are willing to more than double the fiber in their diets from 16 to 37 grams per day can better control diabetes. It needs to be a high amount of diverse types of fibers. Getting nearly 40 grams may sound like a tall order, but it’s actually not that hard and it could make a radical difference in your blood sugar level by increasing insulin production.

Source: BottomLineHealth.com

Improve your focus — Do you have more trouble concentrating than you used to? Studies show that our attention spans are declining, largely due to the use of technology. We feel we have to respond to every text, alert and call immediately. Instead, try putting the phone on “do not disturb” mode for a few minutes when you need to focus on something else. You may find it easier to concentrate and you probably won’t miss anything truly important.

Source: Cynthia Green, Ph.D.

Bug bite relief — If you need some relief from itchy bug bites but can’t find your anti-itch medicine, try these remedies as a substitute. Rub some mustard on the spot to help relive pain, itch and redness.

Source: BottomLineInc.com