Lasik Risks Explained & Managing Your Stress

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7:00am Segment Info:
If you're like most people you probably know someone who's had laser eye surgery and swears about how great it is, but you may not know about some of the unlucky few whom have had life changing side effects. Now the FDA is looking into lasik complaints 10 years after the procedure was approved. The government is pairing with eye surgeons for a major study expected to enroll hundreds of lasik patients to try to better understand who has bad outcomes and exactly what their complaints are. More than 7,500,000 people have had the procedure so far.

How big are those risks? And what are some of the side effects?

MORE AFTER THE JUMP...

According to the FDA about 5% of patients are dissatisfied not a huge number, but if it's your eyes and the side effects are significant. It can be life changing. Some people develop dry eye. Some develop night blindness and less than 1% actually lose some degree of their vision. The problem is not everyone is a good candidate for the surgery and there is concern that patients are either not being properly informed of the risks or they just take their chances. The appeal of being able to throw away your glasses is very strong.

In other news, managing stress can be really difficult. It seems people always do the wrong thing.

You know I always tell you that exercise is a real stress buster. It's one of the best ways to decompress. But it's often easier said than done. Studies show stressed workers often reach for calorie-rich foods, skip the gym and indulge in other bad-behaviors like smoking, drinking or staying out late.

How can we manage this?

You need something to kick start you and get you out of the stress funk. Just taking a brisk, 10-minute walk especially on a sunny day can have an amazing effect. Stay away from stimulants like caffeine and those energy drinks. Chocolate and soda also are not good. And finally try to get some sleep. Resist the late night drinking. It will only disrupt your sleep cycle in the end and increase your stress.