Teenager Almost Lost His Eyesight Until It Was Discovered He Was Malnourished

A 14-year-old boy almost went blind in both eyes until an eye expert discovered that all the teenager ever ate was chicken, chips, bread and Coke, which had left him malnourished.

When his eyesight began failing, Cian Moore had made the agonising decision to retreat from his friends after doctors told him and his mother, Kerry Moore that he was going to have to live with his decaying vision.

Cian complained of dry and gritty eyes, which prompted his mother to take him to different ophthalmologists and pediatricians, a children’s hospital and an adult hospital, but all told them it was nerve damage and nothing could be done.

Hope was fading until Ms Moore’s parents watched an ABC program outlining a cutting-edge treatment for people losing their eyesight, just like Cian, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Immediately, Ms Moore and Cian boarded a flight from Perth to Sydney in December, 2015 to visit one ophthalmologist who gave them the answer.

After examining Cian, Professor Stephanie Watson (chair of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists [RANZCO] public health committee) diagnosed him with Vitamin A deficiency.

It was learned that Cian was a fussy eater and had been living on a diet of only chicken, potatoes, dry bread and Coke since he was about five, which had left him so malnourished that he started losing his eye sight.

Warning: Graphic Image

Vitamin A deficiency is the most common cause for blindness in the world, but is phenomenally rare in Australia. Its symptoms arise when ‘Bitot’s spots’ formulate on the surface of the eye.

Professor Watson said specialists often miss the diagnosis because the patient does appear malnourished or they do not think to ask about their diet. “It’s associated with a bit of food faddiness where kids might not like food textures and tastes so they end up with this incredibly bland diet,” she said.

She explained why the body needs vitamin A. “We need a certain amount of vitamin A and without it the cells don’t mature normally. They don’t become eye cells, they start going down another path like skin,” she said.

Cian immediately took heavy doses of Vitamin A and started drinking vitamin-filled shakes.

While his vision in his right eye almost completely recovered, unfortunately, his left eye has been left permanently damaged.

At 16-years-old, Cian now eats his vegetables, has returned to playing football and enjoys hanging out with his friends again.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk