There are lots of autoimmune diseases that may affect the vision. The autoimmune attack may certainly attack several visual pathways. Mostly, it’s the retina and the anterior visual pathway (optic nerve and chiasm) which can be influenced by autoimmune diseases.

Many autoimmune diseases affect the health and function of our eyes. It’s vital to be aware of these effects in the event that you or someone in your family has an autoimmune disorder, so let us take a look at some of the more common ones:

Multiple sclerosis (MS)

The bond between vision health and this autoimmune disorder is quite intense. In fact, eye doctors may go for testing a patient for this autoimmune disease as one of the factors in poor vision. Initial signs of MS usually consist of optic neuritis, which is a gradual or sudden loss of vision due to inflammation of the optic nerve (which is a massive nerve located at the back of the eye).

Lupus

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that can damage skin, joints, organs, and eyes. Symptoms are mild to lethal. Lupus affects the uterus by inducing inflammation. Symptoms include blurred vision, headache, dry eye, soreness, and light sensitivity.

Type1 Diabetes

All kinds of diabetes have dangerous implications for vision health, but type 1, even though it is much less prevalent than type 2, is still one of the primary causes of blindness in the US. Poor blood glucose control is extremely hard on arteries as time passes. When the weakened vessels break, they compromise the retina’s blood supply and flow blood to the eye. That is known as diabetic retinopathy, but diabetes also increases the risk of developing glaucoma and cataracts.

Thyroid diseases

Autoimmune disorders that result in either high or low thyroid function boost the risk of glaucoma (a requirement of elevated pressure inside the eye). Research to understand this relationship is ongoing, however, it’s thought that with hyperthyroid conditions such as Graves’ disease, cells build up across the eye and also boost pressure which leads to eye strain.

Psoriasis

We have a tendency to think of psoriasis as a skin condition where skin cells build up to form dry, itchy, scaly patches. However, it could also cause inflammation of the conjunctiva, the clear membrane covering the internal lining of the eyelids as well as the whites of the eyes, resulting in discomfort and redness.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

With rheumatoid arthritis symptoms, your defense mechanisms chiefly attack the lining of your joints, beginning with the joints on your fingers and feet. In conclusion, the lining becomes inflamed, shoving on and damaging the cartilage and bone it’s designed to protect. The disorder can affect other parts of your own body as well, including your eyes.

Treating autoimmune diseases naturally can be quite a task, but it isn’t impossible. Following a proper diet routine, rich in green veggies, fruits, which sustain high concentrations of nutrients, vitamins and protein along with routinal eye exercises may help you avoid the affect of autoimmune diseases on your vision.