Keep fit and healthy and Eat Well

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There is evidence to show that a healthy diet prevents the development of eye conditions, although this link isn't as strong as it is for other conditions such as heart disease. However, eating a healthy balanced diet rich in fruit and vegetables may help to keep your eyes as healthy as they can be.

Research suggests that obesity may put someone more at risk of developing certain eye conditions, which can cause sight loss

Obesity can increase the risk of developing:

  • Diabetic retinopathy - Obesity increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Someone with a body mass index (BMI) of over 35 is up to 80 times more likely to develop the condition than someone with a BMI of less than 22.

  • Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) - Obesity may increase the risk of developing dry AMD. Dry AMD is likely to impede the ability to carry out daily activities such as driving, reading a newspaper or watching television. Obesity also increases the speed of progression of AMD.

  • Cataracts - Overweight people can have double the risk of developing cataracts compared to people who are not overweight. Cataracts usually don't lead to blindness as they are treatable.


A balanced diet is essential for staying healthy. A diet that is based on starchy foods like rice, potatoes and pasta, with plenty of fruit and vegetables, foods rich in protein such as meat, fish and pulses (for example lentils), some milk and diary and not too much fat, salt or sugar, will give you all the nutrients you need.

https://www.rnib.org.uk/eye-health/looking-after-your-eyes/nutrition-and-eye

Eye health Suplemennts

The Age Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS)


AREDS was a large-scale clinical trial carried out in the United States that followed about 3,600 people who were already diagnosed with AMD at different stages of severity, including many people with early AMD.
The aim of AREDS was to find out whether nutritional supplementation could help slow down the development of AMD.
AREDS found that people diagnosed with early AMD and who took the "AREDS formula" used on the trial, were 25-30 per cent less likely to go on to develop advanced AMD. They also reduced their risk of developing central vision loss by 19 per cent.

AREDS2 found that when lutein and zeaxanthin replaced beta-carotene in the original AREDS formula, the risk of someone going on to develop advanced AMD decreased by a further 10 per cent. For people on the trial who had a poor dietary intake of lutein and zeaxanthin this increased to 20 per cent.

Although the results of both the AREDS trials are encouraging news, it currently cannot be said that these supplements will help everyone who is diagnosed with early AMD.

https://www.rnib.org.uk/eye-health-eye-conditions-age-related-macular-degeneration-amd/nutritional-supplements-age-related


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