7 Celebrities With Glaucoma

In October 2014, U2 singer Bono revealed the reason he wears sunglasses all the time — and it’s not because that’s just what rock stars do. On BBC’s The Graham Norton Show, Bono said he’s had glaucoma for the last 20 years and has been receiving treatment.

Glaucoma makes the eyes very sensitive to light and glare — so, if you have this condition, ophthalmologists recommend wearing sunglasses whenever you’re outside. According to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, you should choose a pair that blocks 99 to 100 percent of ultraviolet rays. Wraparound glasses offer even more protection, since they prevent the sun’s rays from entering from the sides.

In April 2014, the co-host of The View revealed she uses marijuana to help her live comfortably with glaucoma. In a piece she penned for The Cannabist, Goldberg says that her vaporizer pen eases the pain of headaches caused by glaucoma. (Goldberg has also reported that she has migraine, which can also cause headaches.)

People with glaucoma usually have increased eye pressure, and although marijuana does lower eye pressure, physicians generally don’t recommend using it for that specific purpose. That’s because marijuana’s effects last only a few hours, and it has a variety of side effects that make regular use unsafe, according to the Glaucoma Research Foundation.

In addition to headaches, other signs and symptoms of glaucoma can include difficulty adjusting your vision to a darkened room, trouble focusing on near or far objects, unusual sensitivity to light or glare, persistent pain in or around your eyes, and double vision.

Known for his impressive operatic voice, Bocelli has had congenital glaucoma from a very young age, according to Britannica. While he was already at greater risk of vision loss because of his glaucoma, the Italian-born tenor went totally blind at age 12 after suffering a brain hemorrhage, the result of a soccer accident.

Congenital glaucoma (also known as childhood glaucoma) is rare, per the Glaucoma Research Foundation; some infants are born with this form of the disease, which can be inherited, while other children develop it later on. Signs of congenital glaucoma include a cloudy-looking cornea, sensitivity to light, and excessive tearing as a baby.

Model and actress Christie Brinkley found out she has acute angle-closure glaucoma during a yearly eye exam in December 2021. Thankfully, her ophthalmologist caught it early and was able to prevent vision loss by performing a procedure that Brinkley described as “drilling a hole through my eye” to drain excess fluid from it. She urged her Instagram followers to keep tabs on their eye health and said that the procedure was “not as gruesome as it sounds.”

Acute angle-closure glaucoma is an ocular emergency that results from a rapid increase in intraocular pressure due to outflow obstruction of aqueous humor, the clear liquid inside the front part of the eye, according to StatPearls. It typically causes blurry vision, eye pain, redness, and headache. A combination of medical and surgical approaches are generally used to quickly reduce the intraocular pressure.

When her mother lost most of her vision, Phyllida Law thought it was just due to old age. But after she was also diagnosed with glaucoma (and learned of the hereditary nature of the disease), the British actress started taking prescription eye drops to manage her own eye pressure. She told the Daily Mail that she hasn't noticed any deterioration in her vision yet, and she encourages her daughters, actresses Emma and Sophie Thompson, to get regular eye exams, since early detection is key.

The most common type of glaucoma — primary open-angle glaucoma — is also the most hereditary. If you have any history of the disease within your immediate family, you are 4 to 9 times more likely to develop it yourself. That’s why everyone with a family history of glaucoma should take extra care to monitor their own eye health.

The legendary Dutch footballer Edgar Davids was known for sporting glasses during all of his games. But many fans don’t realize that he’s not just blocking out the sun or showing off his signature style — the glasses help manage his glaucoma. After an operation on his right eye back in 1999, Davids received special permission from FIFA, soccer’s governing body, to wear glasses while playing, and he can still be seen wearing sunglasses today from the sidelines as a coach.

Davids’ glasses didn’t just keep his eyes safe from flying balls. They also helped alleviate discomfort from direct sunlight, which is a common problem for people with glaucoma, according to The Glaucoma Foundation.

And while sports themselves don’t increase the risk of the disease, certain exercise activities that have your head in an inverted position (such as yoga) can increase your intraocular pressure, per the AAO. Talk to your eye doctor about any exercise precautions you should take if you have glaucoma.

Lead singer of the iconic rock band The Byrds, Roger McGuinn is a long-time advocate for early glaucoma detection. After being diagnosed in 2002, the musician said he became “depressed” and had trouble accepting that he could lose his vision. But because his doctors caught it early, he’s been able to keep his intraocular pressure down and his eyesight intact.

The AAO recommends that everyone have a complete eye exam once in their twenties, twice in their thirties, and again at age 40. Ask your doctor for a comprehensive dilated eye exam, which lets in more light and helps your eye doctor check the health of your retinas and optic nerves.

People with diabetes, high blood pressure, or a family history of eye disease should talk to their doctors about when to start eye exams and how often to get them.

Adults age 65 and older should have eye exams every year or two to check for glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, and cataracts.