Jake likes to visit his Grandma Fran on his way home from
school. She always has special treats for him like his favorite
homemade chocolate chip cookies, and she takes time to help him
with his homework. Lately, though, Jake's noticed that Grandma
Fran has trouble reading some of his assignments. When Jake
asked her if anything was wrong, Grandma Fran explained that she
has cataracts — her glasses used to help, but now she needs to
have an operation that will help her eyes see better again. An
operation sounds scary, right? But many older people like Jake's
grandma develop cataracts as they age. Cataract surgery is
common and is almost always successful. Let's find out more
about it. What Are Cataracts? In your eye you have a lens, which
is normally clear like a window that has just been cleaned. If
that lens gets cloudy, it's called a cataract (say: kah-tuh-
rakt). Like a dirty window, a cloudy lens makes it difficult to
see well. The person can still see, but it's blurry. The lens in
your eye is made of pro