Eat Oily Fish at Least Once a Week to Protect Your
Eyesight in Old Age
Consumption of oily fish at least once a week makes
you 50% less likely to have wet AMD
Aug.
8, 2008 - Eating oily fish once a week may reduce age-related macular
degeneration (AMD), which is the major cause of blindness and poor
vision in senior citizens. It is also the number three cause of
blindness in the world, according to a study published today in the
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
There are two types of AMD, wet and dry. Of the
two, wet AMD is the main cause of vision loss.
A team of researchers across seven European
countries and coordinated by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical
Medicine sought to investigate the association between fish intake and
omega 3 fatty acids with wet AMD, comparing people with wet AMD with
controls. Participants were interviewed about their dietary habits
including how much fish they ate and what type.
Information on the main omega 3 fatty acids (docosahexaenoicacid
(DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) was obtained by linking dietary
data with food composition tables.
The
findings show that people who habitually consume oily fish at least once
a week compared with less than once a week are 50% less likely to have
wet AMD. There was no benefit from consumption of non oily white fish.
There was a strong inverse association between
levels of DHA and EPA and wet AMD. People in the top 25% of DHA and EPA
levels (300 mg per day and above) were 70% less likely to have wet AMD.
"This is the first study in Europeans to show a
beneficial association on wet AMD from the consumption of oily fish and
is consistent with results from studies in the USA and Australia,”
according to Astrid Fletcher, Professor of Epidemiology at the London
School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, who led the study.
“Two 3oz servings a week of oily fish, such as
salmon, tuna or mackerel, provides about 500 mg of DHA and EPA per day".
The research team is not, however, recommending
omega 3 supplements as the study did not investigate whether supplements
would have the same benefit as dietary sources.
The EUREYE study was funded by the European
Commission with additional support from the Macular Disease Society UK
and the Thomas Pocklington Trust.
More links to news
reports about eating fish and the value of Omega 2
Aug.
8, 2008 - Eating oily fish once a week may reduce age-related macular
degeneration (AMD), which is the major cause of blindness and poor
vision in senior citizens. It is also the number three cause of
blindness in the world, according to a study published today in the
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The
findings show that people who habitually consume oily fish at least once
a week compared with less than once a week are 50% less likely to have
wet AMD. There was no benefit from consumption of non oily white fish.