Imagine waking up, glancing at the clock, and seeing the numbers melting...
No, you're not looking at that famous Salvador Dalí painting.
What may seem like a surrealist art lover's dream is more like a waking nightmare... that is, for a senior developing age-related macular degeneration ("AMD").
This melting effect isn't an optical illusion. Rather, it's your macula – the small spot in the back of your eye responsible for sharp, central vision – under attack.
Personally, losing one's eyesight is a huge fear of mine. Without good vision, I could lose the ability to drive, read, and even recognize the faces of my loved ones.
Because February is officially AMD and Low Vision Awareness Month, there's no better time to address this No. 1 threat to vision loss in seniors...
Nearly 20 million Americans have some form of macular degeneration – and in many cases, it results in blindness.
AMD is an eye disease that damages the macula – the part of the eye that provides central "high definition" vision. It's the part of the eye that gives you the ability to read and drive. It's located in the back wall of your eye... in the center of the retina.
There are two primary types of AMD that affect one or both eyes:
Wet (Neovascular) macular degeneration: This is the more severe – and thankfully, less common – form. Blood and fluid build up between the retina and the macula... causing the macula to lift from its normally flat position. This is what distorts your vision and eventually leads to vision loss.
Wet macular degeneration has a rapid onset and often happens in people who already suffer from dry macular degeneration...
Dry (Atrophic) macular degeneration: This represents about 85% to 90% of AMD cases. It happens when parts of the macula thin with age and tiny clumps of protein (or "drusen") grow. Unlike its wet counterpart, there is no swelling or blood leaking involved.
As I mentioned, dry macular degeneration can become wet macular degeneration. And the symptoms are similar... including needing brighter light to see clearly, blurriness while reading, a blind spot in the central field of vision, straight lines appearing wavy, and seeing a decreased intensity of colors.
There are three stages of dry macular degeneration: early, intermediate, and advanced.
Early AMD involves getting small deposits in the eye (called drusen) with typically no noticeable vision loss.
People in the intermediate stage could have medium-sized or a few large drusen in the eye. While there still may not be any symptoms, some people might experience blurriness in their central vision or need more light to read.
Once people are in the advanced stage of dry macular degeneration (also called "geographic atrophy"), the drusen are large. You'll see a big dark spot due to the death of retinal cells, which gets bigger and darker over time.
Like many other diseases, there are several risk factors that make you more likely to develop AMD:
- Age: Most people with AMD are 60 and over.
- Smoking: Smokers are twice as likely to develop AMD.
- Race: Caucasians have a higher risk of AMD than other races.
- Family history
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Gender: Women are more likely to develop AMD.
Your eye doctor has several ways to test you for AMD...
One is by examining the back of your eye. Your doctor dilates your eye to examine the back and look for drusen deposits. They can also test your central vision using various grids. You could have AMD if any of the lines on the grid appear faded, broken, or distorted.
Another test is an angiogram that uses a colored dye to highlight abnormalities in the blood vessels of your eye. There's also optical coherence tomography ("OCT"). This imaging test can find thinning or thickening of areas around the retina – which can indicate either wet or dry macular degeneration.
If you have these sorts of symptoms, you should see your doctor. And if they came on rapidly, you may have wet AMD... make an urgent appointment.
Currently, there's no cure for wet or dry AMD. But there are treatments to slow the progression...
Medications injected into your eye shrink blood vessels, allowing the fluid to reabsorb. This can help the retina heal and improve some vision loss. Laser light therapy and photodynamic therapy use light to destroy the leaky blood vessels. These treatments stop the disease's progression.
There's also an implant called an implantable miniature telescope that magnifies images to reduce the size of the blind spot. This is intended for folks who haven't responded to other treatments.
There are treatment options for dry macular degeneration, as well...
The National Eye Institute recommends a specific combination of nutrients that your doctor will prescribe to improve vision for people in the intermediate stage of AMD. They include vitamins C and E, lutein, zeaxanthin, zinc, and copper. Interestingly, beta-carotene should not be taken by smokers because studies have found that it increases lung-cancer risk. Instead, zeaxanthin and lutein have replaced beta-carotene.
Longtime readers know I'm usually skeptical of taking large doses of any one vitamin... But for AMD, this works. And the doses are relatively small.
So... how can you prevent AMD? Do what I do...
- Have a routine eye exam with an ophthalmologist (an eye doctor) after you turn 55 years old to check for any signs. They have M.D. after their names. (Optometrists do not.)
- Exercise regularly (even if it's just walking for 20-30 minutes).
- Eat fruits and dark-colored vegetables (like berries, spinach, and kale).
- Eat foods with tons of omega-3s (like fish and nuts).
- Wear sunglasses – even in winter. Snow reflects up to 80% of UV rays back into your eyes. And UV light can make AMD worse.
Follow these five steps to give your eyes the best care possible.
What We're Reading (and Watching)...
- Something different: This is what you see if you have macular degeneration.
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Dr. David Eifrig and the Health & Wealth Bulletin Research Team
February 10, 2026