Klar: Treating light sensitivity, migraines

When I was growing up in South Dakota, my mother of five, active children, me being the oldest, would suffer terribly from her frequent migraine headaches and bury herself in the dark bedroom, quietly. As children, we were terrified that something mysterious had come to our beautiful mother. I was in charge and took care of my three younger sisters and little brother as best I could. Nothing is more sad than to see your mother retreat into the darkness and cry out in pain.  

I came to Aspen in 1971 and had only suffered a few of the seemingly hereditary headaches. The mountain proved to be very healing for me. Then my little sister, Barbara, moved to be with me after college as I was building my solar permaculture home in Brush Creek. She studied plants and started her little business as the nearby landscape architect fell madly in love. When my mother and grandmother came to Aspen for the wedding, no one had any migraines, thank God. What a wedding for four generations of South Dakota lineage.  

Joe had designed the landscape for the Lauder family, and when they came to our wedding, they invited them to move into their new home as caretakers. So they did, and when Barbara got pregnant with Rebecca, they nestled together at the Lauder home. Soon Barbara started suffering from migraines also, and her treatment was like mother’s hiding in darkened, quiet rooms. With a little baby girl, I held tightly, too.

I helped start the Alternative Medicine Magazine and films with Burton Goldberg and was always looking for solutions to my family’s migraines situations.

Sunrise heralds the start of a new day, but for people with photophobia, or light sensitivity, simply getting through that day can be a chore. Prone to debilitating migraine headaches with wide-ranging symptoms, sufferers have a neurological condition that can rob them of their ability to work, participate in social events, or even spend time with family. 

In 2017, a clinical trial was conducted to look at which migraine symptoms, other than a headache, make it difficult for someone to get through their day. That study, the Migraine in America Symptom and Treatment Trial (MAST), found light sensitivity, also known as photophobia, to be the most “bothersome.”

Sometimes photophobia triggers migraines, and in other cases, it is a troublesome symptom. Up to 90% of people living with migraine experience some degree of light sensitivity. As many as 40% of people living with migraines are constantly light sensitive, even when they are not having a migraine attack. Approximately 30-60% of migraine attacks are precipitated by light. And, in most cases, exposure to light will intensify a migraine attack. Sufferers are often forced into darkness to help control their nausea, pain, vertigo, depression, and other limiting symptoms. 

Migraines have been designated as the sixth most disabling disease by the World Health Organization and one of the top three most prevalent diseases. It is estimated that there are approximately 47 million people in the US who are living with migraines. Worldwide, as many as 14% of the population are affected. The disorder is three times more common in women, and it is most prevalent in the 30- to 39-year-old age group. This is a time of life when people are often working and raising families. Downtime is simply not an option. It is a disease which impacts job performance, careers, and family dynamics. According to a 2020 AJMC article, migraines cost US employers over $11 billion in impaired productivity and absenteeism. The medical costs of migraines eat up another $ 11 billion.  

Historically, migraines have been managed with pharmaceuticals; however, many of these drugs have negative side effects, including muscle spasms, eye-twitching, nausea, vomiting, ulcers, weight gain, mood swings, insomnia, and restlessness. For some patients, drugs can become less effective as the person builds up a tolerance. They can also be expensive. Most people rely on a cocktail of drugs that can cost anywhere from $1 a tablet to as much as $1,000, with the newer drugs costing the most. A 2020 WebMD article estimates the medical costs of treating migraines at $6,575 annually per patient. Other migraine treatments include neuromodulation devices which provide migraine relief by stimulating the trigeminal or vagus nerve. Like pharmaceuticals, however, these devices can be very expensive. 

Today, a revolutionary new technology is bringing migraine sufferers an affordable and risk-free method of managing their condition. For more than a decade, Dr. Posternack , CEO and co-founder of Avulux, has been on a personal mission to find a healthier option for migraine patients. His daughters both suffer from light sensitivity and migraines, and he was determined to help them. Working in conjunction with some of the leading neuro-ophthalmologists and optical laboratories in the United States,  Dr. Posternak  is now bringing Avulux lenses to market, a game-changing solution in the treatment of migraine. Avulux Migraine & Light Sensitivity Glasses are the world’s only patented, clinically proven glasses. Pursuant to FDA’s policy for general wellness tools, Avulux lenses are marketed as both prescription and non-prescription glasses, which may, as part of a healthy lifestyle, help people living with migraine.

It took a village of top scientists and optical engineers to develop the Avulux lenses. Over 10 years of experimentation and clinical research at the University of Utah, led by Dr. Brad Katz of the Morgan Eye Institute, working in conjunction with Tecport Vision, an Orlando based optical engineering firm, went into the development of the Avulux lenses. As a result, consumers now have an affordable, non-invasive solution to help control the incidence and symptoms associated with photophobia.

The research team used nanotechnology to develop Avulux’s highly sophisticated, patented, precision optical filter, which blocks up to 97% of harmful blue, amber, and red light while letting in up to 70% of soothing green light. Published clinical research shows that Avulux is more likely than other types of lenses to help people living with migraine, providing them with the equivalent of a mobile darkroom.  

Today, Avulux glasses can be worn anywhere, indoors, or outdoors, even as a complement to a person’s migraine wellness regimen. Avulux lenses do not distort color perception, enabling the wearer to manage light comfortably without affecting their quality of life. There are no negative side effects

Light sensitivity lenses can be an essential part of a person’s migraine toolkit. These glasses allow migraine sufferers to come out of the dark and get  back to enjoying the activities they love most, safely, and affordably.

Joanie Klar is an Aspen resident, but she’s also a global citizen supporting wellness and sustainability.