Cataract : Risk Factors

Ophthalmologic surgery is a surgical procedure performed on the eye or any part of the eye.

Refractive eye surgeries are medical procedures used to correct such refractive errors as myopia , hyperopia , and presbyopia . The three most widely utilized refractive surgeries approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are photorefractive keratectomy (PRK); laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis (LASIK); and laser thermal keratoplasty (LTK). PRK and LASIK use an excimer laser to correct myopia by reshaping the cornea. The two techniques differ in how the surface layer of the cornea is treated.

When you exercise, you gain more strength and flexibility. Your mood will improve, and you'll be able to think better.

In elderly patients, symptoms of depression can be mistaken for symptoms of another medical problem, so it is important for clinicians to consider all physical problems and medications of elderly patients before making a diagnosis.

Smoking is the inhalation of the smoke of burning tobacco encased in cigarettes, pipes, and cigars. Casual smoking is the act of smoking only occasionally, usually in a social situation or to relieve stress . A smoking habit is a physical addiction to tobacco products. Many health experts now regard habitual smoking as a psychological addiction, too, and one with serious health consequences.

Question: What are the negative effects of smoking? Answer: Smokers have an increased risk of the following: Lung cancer; Lung disease; Heart attack; Heart disease; Hypertension; Stroke; Oral cancer; Bladder cancer; Pancreatic cancer; Cervical cancer; Pregnancy complications; Low birth weight babies; Early menopause; Lower estrogen level for women; Facial wrinkles. Children of smokers have an increased risk of the following: Sudden infant death syndrome; Respiratory infections; Lung cancer; Ear infections.

When you smoke, toxins are carried by your blood to every organ in your body. At the same time, the carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke keeps red blood cells from carrying as much oxygen as normal.

Use of cigarettes and other tobacco products to engage in a habit that almost always leads to addiction. Every day 3,000 young people light up their first cigarette; every year a million teenagers become regular smokers. Adolescent smoking has risen steadily throughout the 1990s, following a sharp decline in the 1970s that leveled off in the 1980s. A 1994 report by the office of the U.S. Surgeon General found that approximately 28% of teens smoked in 1991 and 1992. By 1995 a survey of high school students released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the prevalence of teen smoking had increased to 34.8%. The study also found that smoking was most prevalent among white teenagers (38%), followed by Hispanics (34%), and blacks (19%). In addition to smoking more, teenagers are also starting to smoke earlier. The average teen smokes his or her first cigarette at the age of 13, becoming a regular smoker at 1444. A 1996 survey by the Public Health Service found that 21% of eighth graders and 30% of tenth graders surveyed smoked. The harmful effects of teenage smoking are known to be both short-term and long-term. During adolescence, smoking interferes with ongoing lung growth and development, preventing the attainment of full lung function. Teenagers who smoke are less fit than their nonsmoking peers and more apt to experience shortness of breath, dizziness, coughing, and excess phlegm in their lungs. They are also more vulnerable to colds, flu, pneumonia, and other respiratory problems. Smoking for even a short time can produce a chronic smoker's cough. In addition to respiratory problems and a diminished level of overall well-being in adolescence, teenage smoking is also responsible for health problems in adulthood. It is estimated that one-third of the teenagers who start smoking each year will eventually die of diseases related to tobacco use—diseases that will shorten their lives by an average of 12-15 years. Cigarette smoking is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), and stroke. The 1994 Surgeon General's report links teenage smoking to cardiovascular disease in both adolescents and adults. The same report cites evidence that the length of time a person has smoked has a greater impact on the risk of developing lung cancer and other smoking-related cancers than the number of cigarettes smoked—in other words, starting to smoke at an early age is an even greater health risk than being a heavy smoker. Several factors have been cited as inducements for teenagers to begin smoking. It is generally agreed that the most important is peer pressure. Having friends who smoke makes smoking appear desirable to teens and makes them feel different or left out if they don't smoke also. (Many teenagers overestimate the prevalence of teen smoking.) At parties or in other social situations, smoking can help teenagers mask or cope with feelings of insecurity or self-consciousness. They also use it—as adults do—to help them cope with a broad range of Stressors and negative feelings. Other factors cited as playing a role in teenage smoking include curiosity, boredom, and the desire to rebel against parents and other authority figures. Teenagers are much less likely to model parental smoking behavior than that of their peers. The main impact parents can have on teen smoking is to actively discourage their children from smoking by discussing its harmful effects and to be supportive of their children in other areas of their lives. The 6.2 billion dollars that the tobacco industry spends every year on advertising has also been shown to have a significant effect on teenage smoking. In spite of industry denials, teenagers are a crucial market for cigarette manufacturers. Since the vast majority of people who smoke start before the age of 18, this is the prime period during which tobacco companies must make their appeal to

Right away, you may cough, wheeze, and have a sore throat—that’s the tar clogging up your lungs. You may also have a headache, feel dizzy, and be nauseated—that’s the nicotine in your brain. Over time, you risk lung and throat cancer, and lung diseases like emphysema and bronchitis.

Smoking is the inhalation of the smoke of burning tobacco encased in cigarettes, pipes, and cigars. Casual smoking is the act of smoking only occasionally, usually in a social situation or to relieve stress . A smoking habit is a physical addiction to tobacco products. Many health experts now regard habitual smoking as a psychological addiction, too, and one with serious health consequences.

Ex-smokers' risk of heart disease may eventually approach that of a lifetime nonsmoker, but their risk of lung cancer is less likely to fade, even after long periods of time.

Hear the facts about smoking from those who have been doing it for a few years. Find a smoker or two. Ask a few questions. See if their answers sound something like these.

Smoking during pregnancy reduces oxygen and blood flow to your baby. This may cause bleeding problems that can put your pregnancy at risk.

Smoking is the inhalation of the smoke of burning tobacco that is used mostly in three forms: cigarettes, pipes, and cigars.

When you are trying to quit, the support of friends, coworkers and family members can make a big difference.

Detailed information on respiratory diseases and smoking, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, lung cancer

Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do to keep your heart disease from getting worse. Smoking reduces oxygen flow to your heart, speeds plaque buildup, and increases your risk for heart attack.

Life may seem out of control, but you're really making progress. You're going through withdrawal, which is how your body recovers from smoking.

One of the major triggers for asthma attacks is cigarette smoke. Cigarette, pipe or cigar smoke is especially harmful to people with asthma because it damages the cells in the lungs that make the protective coating lining the bronchial tubes.

Everybody knows smoking is bad for your health. Now here's something you may not know: Smoking is bad for your looks. It's true.

The most common reasons include: "Smoking gives me more energy. I smoke to keep from slowing down. I reach for a cigarette when I need a lift. When I'm tired, smoking perks me up."

Detailed information on teens and smoking

Do you have healthy gums? You may kiss them goodbye if you're a smoker.

Smoking damages your arteries, and it’s thought that the damaged arteries in the discs and joints in your back may lead to pain and injury.

For most people, the best way to quit smoking is some combination of medicine, a method to change personal habits and emotional support.

Teens who smoke are more likely to quit if they can be convinced to participate in a cessation program that emphasizes the health risks of smoking, provides motivational encouragement and coping skills, and encourages a healthy overall lifestyle.

Smoking is an important and preventable cause of death and illness. However, as more money has been spent on smoking cessation programs, the incidence of cigarette smoking has risen. In 2002, 48 percent of men and 12 percent of women in the world were smokers (World Health Organization). Tobacco consumption increased from 1,100 million individuals during the early 1990s to 1,300 million by the year 2000 (United Nations Economic and Social Council). At this rate, the number of tobacco-related deaths is projected to reach more than 9 million by the year 2020. The number of tobacco-related deaths increased from 4.2 million to 4.9 million between 2000 and 2002, meaning that more than nine people die due to smoking-related illnesses every minute. Research indicates that tobacco causes more than twenty categories of fatal and disabling diseases, including lung cancer , cardiovascular disease, and respiratory diseases. However, tobacco is very addictive, and the majority of smokers have difficulty quitting even when they have a medical condition. For example, a 2000 study of 15,660 adults by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found that 38 percent of people with emphysema, 25 percent of people with asthma , 20 percent of people with hypertension and cardiovascular problems, and 19 percent of people with diabetes continue to smoke. Although smoking was responsible for their health conditions, they perceived that, since their health conditions already exist, quitting would not have an affect on their future health and well-being. A recent area of concern related to tobacco use has been nonsmokers' exposure to second-hand smoke. Parental smoking has been proven to contribute to increased rates of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in addition to chronic illnesses in children such as asthma, bronchitis, colds, and pneumonia . Pregnant women who chew tobacco, smoke, or are exposed to second-hand smoke have a higher risk of miscarriage and of giving birth to low birth weight babies, who are prone to infection. Women who smoke are more likely to be victims of primary and secondary infertility, to have delays in conceiving, and to have an increased risk of early menopause and low bone density ("Current Issues and Forthcoming Events"). Most women are unaware of these dangers. Not only can the expectant mother place her unborn fetus in danger, but she can also place herself at risk for future smoking-related diseases and early mortality. An illustration of cigarette smoke entering the lungs. Cigarette smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic or carcinogenic. Repeated inhalation of the smoke causes permanent damage to internal organs and reduces the body's ability to fight infection. [Todd Buck/Custom Medical Stock Photo, Inc. Reproduced by permission.] Quitting smoking at any age improves life expectancy. The 2002 Cancer Prevention Study examined the benefits of smoking cessation in 877,243 men and women in the United States. Life expectancy of smokers who quit before age thirty-five was extended by 8.5 years in men and by 7.7 years in women. The study found that smokers who quit at any age are subjected to meaningful life extensions (Taylor, et al.). In addition to a life free from smoking-related diseases, an individual who quits smoking can experience increased longevity. SEE ALSO C ANCER ; H EART D ISEASE ; L OW B IRTH W EIGHT I NFANT ; N UTRITIONAL D EFICIENCY ; P REGNANCY . Daphne C. Watkins

When people consider the cost of smoking, they usually focus on the cost of the cigarettes alone. But that's only the first step.

Every day, nearly 6,000 teens and pre-teens try cigarettes for the first time, according to the American Lung Association. A third of these first-timers will end up becoming smokers.

I know that smoking is very bad for me. I've cut down to one cigarette after lunch and another after dinner each day, with two or three more on most weekend nights when I socialize. I really enjoy smoking, but I want to know if I'm harming myself.

Among other things, keep a personal benefits log. Write down the benefits you experience from being smoke-free (for example, I can smell flowers again!) Write the specific occurrence, the date it first happened, and your reaction.

A smoker's recovery plan includes listing those activities that you have chosen to help reduce the pressures of nicotine withdrawal and staying smoke-free.

The personal motivation list will help you identify the benefits of quitting, for you, for your family, and for your friends.

Starting at what is commonly called middle age, operations of the human body begin to be more vulnerable to daily wear and tear; there is a general decline in physical, and possibly mental, functioning. In the Western countries, the length of life is often into the 70s. The upward limit of the life span, however, can be as high as 120 years. During the latter half of life, an individual is more prone to have problems with the various functions of the body and to develop any number of chronic or fatal diseases. The cardiovascular, digestive, excretory, nervous, reproductive and urinary systems are particularly affected. The most common diseases of aging include Alzheimer's, arthritis, cancer , diabetes, depression, and heart disease.

In general, only about three percent of the elderly living independently in the community will experience depression. That figure increases to around 20 to 30 percent of persons in nursing homes or with chronic illnesses like emphysema, heart disease or diabetes.

Aging is the process of growing older, a process that includes physical changes and, sometimes, mental changes. "The aged" refers to elderly people, those who have reached an advanced age.

Through the daily grapevine of popular culture, we get the message over and over that young is better than old. But new research contradicts these age-old stereotypes. Indeed, studies suggest that the older you get, the happier you become.

Starting at what is commonly called middle age, operations of the human body become more vulnerable to daily wear and tear. There is a general decline in physical, and possibly mental, functioning. In the Western countries, the length of life often extends into the 70s. However, the upward limit of the life span can be as high as 120 years. During the latter half of life, an individual is more prone to problems with the various functions of the body, and to a number of chronic or fatal diseases. The cardiovascular, digestive, excretory, nervous, reproductive, and urinary systems are particularly affected. The most common diseases of aging include Alzheimer's, arthritis, cancer , diabetes, depression , and heart disease .

13 Real-Life Age-StoppersYou can't turn back the clock, but you can slow down the aging processes often associated with getting older.Says Robert N. Butler, M.D., president and CEO of The International Longevity Center in New York City: "Many of t...

This term is used by demographers when referring to an increase over time in the proportion of older persons in the population. It does not necessarily imply an increase in life expectancy, that "people are living longer that they used to," or that they are dying on average at older ages, although these phenomena are usually observed in association with aging of the population. From the demo-graphic perspective, the principal determinant of aging in the population is a decline in the birth rate. When fewer children are born than in earlier years, the consequence is a decline in the proportion of younger persons, and it necessarily follows that there is an increase in the proportion of older persons. The proportion is further weighted toward older persons by improved survival rates from conditions that can cause death in early life, that is, in infancy and childhood and among younger adults. In the industrialized nations, a more recent phenomenon has been an increase in life expectancy that has accompanied improved survival rates, and this, of course, contributes further to the increased proportion of older persons. However, if birth rates remain high, there is also an increase in the numbers, and therefore in the proportion, of infants and children in the population. This happened in many industrialized nations after World War II, during the "baby boom" period, roughly 1946 to 1960. There was a secondary surge in birth rates when the children born during that period reached peak reproductive ages (the echo of the baby boom) in the 1980s and 1990s. The baby boom and its echo temporarily retarded and in some nations even briefly reversed the long-term trend toward smaller families. This trend began in the Western industrial nations before the 1920s and continued through the 1930s, aggravated by the Great Depression, but persisting through good times as well as bad. Although it is true that in the past, declining birth rates were primarily responsible and reductions in mortality rates played little part in the process of aging the population, in the future it can be expected that increases in life expectancy will contribute more to the process. Little further reduction in mortality rates in the first half of life can be expected to occur, so increased life expectancy, or mortality rate reduction, in the second half of life, from age forty-five onward, is beginning to exert more influence on the structure of the population (the shape of the population pyramid). This too is contributing to an increase in the proportion of older persons in the population, and over the coming decades, other things being equal, this will play an increasingly prominent role in the process. J OHN M. L AST ( SEE ALSO : Birthrate ; Demography ; Life Expectancy and Life Tables ; Mortality Rates ; Population Pyramid )

Consider this fact: More than half the people who ever lived to be 65 are alive today. That alone suggests that myths about aging based on past generations may not hold true for this one. Let's look at 10 of those myths, and see what experts have to say about them.

Art, music, and other challenging activities may play a role in keeping the mind alert, even for those affected by dementia.

Discusses what we can do, if anything, to put ourselves in the category of those who live to advanced ages.

Not only do baby boomers expect to live into their 80s or 90s, but they are expecting to be independent, one expert says.

This report helps you avoid common health woes, such as heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, and sight and hearing disorders.

Beyond giving you energy to conquer a multitasking day, your diet can help slow the tick-tock of the biological clock that governs the aging process.

No need to search for a secret formula to erase the effects of getting older. You already have the power to keep yourself feeling young for years.

This report can help you preserve your independence and remain in your home in your later years. Includes information on financial and legal planning, finding and working with a caregiver, and useful home modifications.

This report takes a view of the whole woman and helps her choose the most practical strategies for making her midlife transition.

A practical guide to the causes of memory loss and the steps you can take to improve your ability to learn and remember for a lifetime.

This report describes causes and treatments for the most common age-related skin problems. It also reviews the newest and most effective cosmetic treatments, including anti-aging creams, laser procedures, Botox injections, and surgeries.

New research indicates that-while not exactly a fountain of youth-exercise can reverse some of the physiological signs of aging and reduce overall disease and mortality.

This report details how physical changes that occur as you age can affect your sexuality.It includes information on the therapies and medications that can help you overcome sexual problems.

Aimed at older adults, this report provides practical advice on how to avoid common and often deadly accidents at home.

Like the rest of your body, your eyes naturally change throughout your life. These changes occur gradually and become apparent in later years, as the structures in and around your eyes become less efficient. For most people, the first sign is presbyopia, deterioration of close-up vision. Luckily, this problem can be treated with reading glasses or bifocals.

Learn how to put together a caregiving plan, draw on useful services, and address legal, medical, and financial planning issues. Also, find advice on involving family members, handling daily tasks, and maintaining your well being.

It's never easy to ponder death, whether you're facing the demise of a loved one or the end of your own life. But taking some time to think and plan ahead for those final hours or days can be a future blessing for your family and others close to you. Most people want a say in all life's important decisions. The same should be true regarding decisions surrounding death, such as what kind of medical treatment you receive. But what if you're unable to make your decisions or wishes known? Say, for example, you are unconscious and can't speak or hear. Unless you have spoken with your loved ones and taken certain legal actions, there may be confusion and stress over what those decisions will be and who can make them for you.

Physical removal of age spots can be costly and painful. Topical treatments take time to work, but are generally safe, cost less than removal procedures, and are easier on the skin.

While regular physical activity is a cornerstone of wellness at any age, it’s during your 30s, 40s and 50s that exercise becomes especially important.

Cataracts: Your EvaluationAn evaluation will help your eye doctor learn more about vision problems you're having and whether cataracts are the cause. This evaluation includes a medical history, vision tests, and an eye exam.

You may think wearing goggles is enough to protect your eyes, but many injuries can happen to your eyes that goggles won't prevent.

Detailed information on eye safety and tips to avoid eye injury

Each year, 100,000 Americans suffer eye injuries that cause temporary or permanent vision loss. Ninety percent of these injuries could be avoided. The following precautions can help you prevent them.

Detailed information on eye safety and tips to avoid eye injury

Detailed information on eye trauma in children

Detailed information on eye safety and tips to avoid eye injury

Detailed information on eye trauma in children

Detailed information on eye safety and tips to avoid eye injury

If you suffer a serious eye injury, what you don't do immediately afterward may help more than what you do.

Auto battery accidents cause many Americans to lose their sight or suffer serious eye injuries.