A Cooking Series for People With Vision Loss

Northampton, MA – The American Macular Degeneration Foundation (AMDF) has launched a four-part cooking series, “Eat Right For Your Sight,” for those affected by age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and anyone interested in optimizing healthy vision.  Each episode is hosted by journalist, author and filmmaker Jennifer Trainer Thompson, and combines the AMD Diet for optimum eye nutrition with tips on low vision cooking aids that make cooking in the kitchen accessible and safe. 

Based on AMDF’s cookbook of the same name, the show’s recipes for macular degeneration derive from the groundbreaking work of Johanna M. Seddon, MD, ScM, Director of Retina and of the Macular Degeneration Center of Excellence, UMass Chan Medical School. 

Dr. Seddon’s AMDF-funded studies have established eye nutrition as a cornerstone of AMD care, and her discoveries of the influence that genetic makeup and lifestyle choices have on one another form the basis for nearly all of the healthy habits that eye doctors recommend to AMD patients: stopping smoking, eating foods rich in omega-3 fats (whole fish) and lutein and zeaxanthin (dark, leafy greens), maintaining recommended body weight and blood pressure, and exercising. 

Dr. Seddon, who co-authored the cookbook along with host Trainer Thompson, appears in episode 3.  AMDF Founder and President Chip Goehring, who was diagnosed with AMD at the age of 39 and subsequently founded AMDF, appears in Episode 2 to do a little prep work, test out some of the safety tips, and describe his ongoing journey with macular degeneration. 

“We are grateful to the Novartis STEP Program for funding the series. Their grant gave us free rein to create something that we feel can have real impact in helping people find their way in a new life with AMD,” says Goehring. 

Tying the entire series together, Jennifer Trainer Thompson develops a dialogue with guests, while at the same time following recipe instructions, sharing nutrition insights, and incorporating safety adaptations that are appropriate to each dish. 

“These shows are built on health and how-to, but at their core they convey hope,” says Trainer Thompson. “All are key ingredients to maintaining a great quality of life as we age, especially for those who have to adjust to the additional losses that accompany a chronic condition like macular degeneration. It’s something we can live with, and still live well!” 

The series can be viewed at macular.org/cookingshow. The recipes featured in the show are also available on the AMDF website, macular.org, as well as in the cookbook, “Eat Right For Your Sight,” available from AMDF through the website or by calling 1-888-MACULAR (1-888-622-8527).

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The American Macular Degeneration Foundation (macular.org) is a patient-centric foundation that supports potentially game-changing AMD research, education and advocacy in order to improve quality of life and treatment outcomes for all of those affected by AMD.