Antioxidant-rich foods seem to lessen risk of vision loss

The question: As people age, tissue in the macula – the part of the eye responsible for seeing fine detail – sometimes deteriorates, a condition known as age-related macular degeneration. High doses of antioxidant supplements are believed to help slow the progression of this disease. Might eating foods high in antioxidants prevent it?

This study analyzed medical and dietary data on 4,170 people 55 and older. During an eight-year period, 560 people (13 percent) were diagnosed with ARMD. Based on information from food diaries, medical tests and eye examinations, people who took in the most vitamin E and zinc from their diets were the least likely to develop the eye disease. Above-average consumption of foods high in vitamins C and E, beta carotene and zinc was associated with a 35 percent lower risk of the disease, compared with below-average consumption of at least one of these antioxidants.

Who may be affected by these findings? Older people, who are most likely to have ARMD, the leading cause of vision loss in people over 65. It affects women more often than men, whites more than blacks.

Caveats: The study, which was not randomized, did not account for all differences between participants.

Find this study: Dec. 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association; abstract available online at www.jama.com.

Learn more about age-related macular degeneration at www.nei.nih.gov/health and www.medem.com.