Episode 285: Dr. Radka Toms | Can Your Eye Doctor Spot Sugar Damage Before Your Blood Work?

Your eyes might be revealing metabolic disease long before your doctor catches it in bloodwork — and most people have no idea. In this episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Dr. Radka Toms, ophthalmologist, functional medicine practitioner, and founder of My Sugar Stop, to explore the fascinating and largely unknown connection between sugar, gut health, and your vision. Dr. Toms shares her own story — from a "hardcore conventional doctor" eating chocolate bars for lunch to developing rosacea and insulin resistance and eventually pioneering the field of nutritional ophthalmology. What You'll Learn: 👁️ The Eye-Metabolic Health Connection — How your ophthalmologist may spot insulin resistance, pre-diabetes, and inflammation before your blood work does 💧 Dry Eye & Sugar — Why so many dry eye patients have a metabolic root cause, and how improving diet can reduce or eliminate symptoms 🔬 The Gut-Eye Axis — How bacteria in your gut produce metabolites that travel through the bloodstream and directly affect eye tissue — including the link to macular degeneration, glaucoma, and Sjögren's syndrome 🌿 The 7 Types of Eye Conditions Linked to Metabolic Health: Dry eye & ocular rosacea Diabetic retinopathy Age-related macular degeneration Glaucoma Cataracts Vascular/cardiometabolic changes in the eye Sjögren's syndrome ☀️ Light as Medicine — Circadian biology, why 10 minutes outside within 20 minutes of waking matters, when to wear sunglasses (11am–3pm), and how ceiling lights at night are confusing your brain 🥑 The PFF Framework — Dr. Toms' practical nutrition approach: Protein, Fat (especially omega-3s), Fiber, and Fermented foods — and why fiber is "the king" 💊 The DRRN Method — Define, Replace, Rebalance, Nourish: Dr. Toms' four-phase approach to helping patients reverse metabolic eye conditions through lifestyle change Mentioned in This Episode: My Sugar Stop — https://www.mysugarstop.com/ Matrix Eye Clinic & UHealth (UK-based in-person care): https://matrixeyeclinic.com/our-services/nutritional-ophthalmology/ Lipopolysaccharides as an early inflammatory marker Robert Lustig's early work on sugar and inflammation About Dr. Radka Toms: Dr. Toms completed her medical training in the Czech Republic and ophthalmology specialization in the UK, later adding functional medicine and integrative nutritional coaching. She is the founder of My Sugar Stop and Oko Health, and a pioneer in nutritional ophthalmology. S