A few weeks after having announced major changes to its governance structure, Luxottica Group accepted the resignation of two executives.

Enrico Cavatorta, appointed only six weeks ago as CEO of corporate operations and interim co-CEO of markets confirmed his intention to resign from the company at a special meeting of the Board of Directors, due to disagreements on the new governance structure. Roger Abravanel, a member of the Board, also resigned for the same reasons.

The chairman of Luxottica, Leonardo Del Vecchio, will take on the executive responsibilities ad interim while the company searches for a new-CEO of markets. Once a replacement has been found, he or she will be appointed at the same time as Massimo Vian, who was recently named co-CEO of operations and product.

No doubt to mitigate the negative effect all these changes might have on the market, Luxottica announced somewhat in advance that it was satisfied with its third-quarter financial results. The company reported an increase in net income of about ten per cent. Official results will be released on October 29.

 

Source:

http://www.luxottica.com/en/luxottica-announces-chairman-leonardo-vecchio-takes-executive-responsibilities-ad-interim

The spokespersons for Prairie Ophthalmics (1988) Inc. and Optometric Services Inc (OSI) announced that they have signed a strategic alliance agreement.

Under the agreement, the group of independent optometrists, OSI, will invest in the independent laboratory, Prairie Ophthalmics, which is based in Saskatchewan, and become a minority shareholder.

OSI’s investment will allow Prairie Ophthalmics to gradually increase its production capacity and to expand its client base beyond Saskatchewan, thus giving more of OSI’s clinics the opportunity to benefit from the laboratory’s products and services.

For more information, click HERE to read the news release (French document only).

Today, Thursday, October 9, the industry is invited to support Optometry Giving Sight and its annual fundraising campaign known as the World Sight Day Challenge (WSD). Now in its 7^th year, the World Sight Day Challenge is the largest annual global fundraising campaign to address avoidable blindness caused by uncorrected refractive error – the need for an eye exam and glasses. The campaign has set a fundraising target of $1 million in 2014.

 

Participation can be a fundraising pledge, or a monthly or annual donation, before the end of World Sight Day, today, October 9.

 

Share your activities via social media and the #givingsight hashtag.

 

 

Taking daily supplements of selenium or vitamin E appears to have no significant effect on the development of age-related cataracts in men, according to an American study.

 

Past research, particularly studies involving animals, suggests that nutrients can prevent the onset of cataracts or slow their progression. Vitamin E and selenium are of particular interest.

 

The researchers followed a total of 11,267 participants. Over a period of 5.6 years of treatment and follow-up, 389 cases of cataracts developed. There were 185 cases of cataracts in the selenium group and 204 in the group that didn’t take selenium, and there were 197 cases of cataracts in the vitamin E group and 192 in the group without vitamin E. Similar findings were seen in statistics on cataract surgery.

 

“These randomized trial data from a large cohort of apparently healthy men indicate that long-term daily supplemental use of vitamin E has no material impact on cataract incidence,” concluded the authors of the paper published in JAMA. “The data also exclude any large beneficial effect on cataract for long-term supplemental use of selenium, with or without vitamin E, although a smaller but potentially important beneficial effect could not be ruled out.”

Source:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140918162309.htm

 

A Spanish study identified certain foods that could ease the symptoms of glaucoma. However, stronger remedies are needed to completely cure the disease.

 

Researchers from the University of Valencia analyzed data from more than 20 previous studies. They found that certain studies showed the benefits of a moderate consumption of red wine or dark chocolate, green tea, fruit and vegetables (particularly green vegetables, peaches, oranges and carrots), as well as liver, in reducing pressure in the eye.

 

Most of these ingredients are rich in antioxidants. Two of the studies analyzed found that a high intake of retinol, abundant in liver, milk, cheese or butter, or Vitamin B1, found in bread and potatoes, reduced the risk of developing glaucoma by half. Some studies found that coffee protected against retinal degeneration, while others suggested that the anti-inflammatory properties of omega-3 fats slowed down the progression of glaucoma.

 

For Karen Sparrow, from the Great Britain Association of Optometrists, these findings are positive, but must be treated with caution, given the relatively small sample on which they are based. “All of the diet tips in the survey could go some way to reducing the eye pressure, but can also be viewed as tips to maintain good general health overall, including the eyes.”

 

Like many scientists, she believes that gene therapy could cure glaucoma in the long run… likely more effectively than chocolate, though no doubt providing less pleasure!

Source:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2746164/How-chocolate-red-wine-plate-liver-help-glaucoma-bay.html