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Celiac disease is an abnormal autoimmune disease of the connective tissues. It can be triggered any time and leads to damaged intestines and malabsorption. And over 200 medical conditions.
The most difficult nutrients to absorb are fat soluble vitamins such as vitamin D, A, E and K. These vitamins can evaluated on testing and people with celiac commonly have low levels. Macular Degeneration has been shown in many peer reviewed research to respond to nutritional measures and to lifestyle changes. Especially to the addition to the diet of carotenoids such as lutein, and zeaxanthin: yellow fat soluble vitamins, and zinc.
Yellow absorbs blue light from our environment which is important as blue light damages the retina and reduces our ability to make melatonin (thereby interrupting good sleep). There is a high concentration of lutein and zeaxanthin in the macula of the eye which supply yellow to absorb blue light. What if one has poor absorption and poor concentrations of yellow lutein and zeaxanthin in the back of the eye. That may lead to blue light damaging the retina. And when part of the retina called the macula is damaged, there is the slow deterioration of ones central vision, the point where ones vision is most exact. Peripheral or side vision is spared, but one finds it more difficult to read, write, drive, and recognize faces. This damage might look like the deposit of drusens ( see below) and this is called macular degeneration or sometimes referred to as ARMD.
In the end, if you have tested positive for celiac disease or gluten sensitivity, change your diet to one grain free, sugar free, legume free diet called GAPS, and take fat soluble vitamins and omega 3 high supplements. One may need the help of digestive enzymes as the pancreas ( also affect by the connective tissue issues) often can't make enough digestive enzymes to digest the food nor can the liver make enough bile. If in doubt get tested for markers of malnutrition, vitamin A, D, E and K levels and inflammation markers like CRP-HS.
People with Celiac disease have higher risks of other risk factors for ARMD such as:
- higher risk of high homocysteine (from higher risk of having MTHFR variations, and low vitamin B12 from antibodies to the parietal cells of the stomach, so absorption is impaired, or low folate levels)
-higher rates of microvascular impairment and poorer circulation, in this case affecting the eyes.
-higher rates of addiction such as smoking, and smoking is an added risk for the development of ARMD.
-higher rates of oxidative stress and free radicals because of higher rates of MTHFR variations which causes the formation of free radicals that damage.
-higher rates of inflammation from high omega 6/3 ratio (not getting and absorbing enough omega 3's), genetics, but also gluten ingestion whether by choice or accidental. Gluten free packaged foods have a higher rate of contamination, for example 40% of GF breakfast cereals are contaminated. I recommend a grain free diet.
If you should find yourself having visual difficulties, don't wait! Make an appointment to be examined by a specialist in eye health.
If you are interested in an introduction to Macular Degeneration, I found a good article written by Dr. Grossman at https://www.naturaleyecare.com/eye-conditions/macular-degeneration/
Here is an exerpt:
Macular Degeneration (ARMD, or MD)
Blindness is not inevitable for people who have ARMD. There is a large amount of peer review research showing ARMD to be a nutritional and lifestyle responsive eye disease, meaning that you can stabilize and possibly even improve your vision with healthy lifestyle choices.
Most people with ARMD have dry macular degeneration. In dry macular degeneration tiny, yellow drusens develop. Drusens are accumulations of fatty, yellow material that form in the macula and people with ARMD have more and larger drusens than what is common with aging. They are thought to be comprised of waste proteins and lipids (oily material) that begin to accumulate due to poor circulation and waste-flushing in the eye. Antioxidants are important for the normal waste-clearing process. The drusen slowly crowd, distort, or break the cells in the macula leading to deterioration and resulting in blurred vision. Because drusen also include immune-system regulating molecules, it is thought that they are part of the immune system.3
The second type of macular degeneration is the "wet" form, (also known as choroidal neovascularization) in which new blood vessels begin to develop near the macula, causing fast and serious vision loss. Wet macular degeneration can result from progression of dry macular degeneration, left untreated, and affects about 10% of macular degeneration patients.
If AMD is found first in one eye, the other eye follows the same progression. This is because the nutrient deficiencies and other system-wide problems would exist in both eyes but manifest in one eye before the other..
Blindness is not inevitable for people who have ARMD. There is a large amount of peer review research showing ARMD to be a nutritional and lifestyle responsive eye disease, meaning that you can stabilize and possibly even improve your vision with healthy lifestyle choices.
Most people with ARMD have dry macular degeneration. In dry macular degeneration tiny, yellow drusens develop. Drusens are accumulations of fatty, yellow material that form in the macula and people with ARMD have more and larger drusens than what is common with aging. They are thought to be comprised of waste proteins and lipids (oily material) that begin to accumulate due to poor circulation and waste-flushing in the eye. Antioxidants are important for the normal waste-clearing process. The drusen slowly crowd, distort, or break the cells in the macula leading to deterioration and resulting in blurred vision. Because drusen also include immune-system regulating molecules, it is thought that they are part of the immune system.3
The second type of macular degeneration is the "wet" form, (also known as choroidal neovascularization) in which new blood vessels begin to develop near the macula, causing fast and serious vision loss. Wet macular degeneration can result from progression of dry macular degeneration, left untreated, and affects about 10% of macular degeneration patients.
If AMD is found first in one eye, the other eye follows the same progression. This is because the nutrient deficiencies and other system-wide problems would exist in both eyes but manifest in one eye before the other..
...end of exerpt.
Read the whole article which covers: gender, prescription drugs linked to MD, Pathology, symptoms, causes, biochemistry and lifestyle issues.
If you are diagnosed with macular degeneration, follow your specialists advise about lifestyle, protecting your eyes from harmful light waves and nutritional supplementation. There seems to be a roll to increase the microvascular circulation of the eye with herbs, acupuncture, laser, and microcurrent stimulation (as described in the book by Dr. Edward Kondrot).
To your health
Dr. Barbara
