HHS HealthBeat (September 6, 2010)

Eyes on women’s food

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Researchers say middle-age and older women who eat foods with a variety of vitamins and minerals are less likely to develop cataracts.

Julie Mares of the University of Wisconsin-Madison looked at data on about 1,800 women ages 55 to 86 who reported what they ate and years later had eye photos taken:

"Diet was the most important thing that we measured to lower risk. Diet is something that we can do to lower our risk." (8 seconds)

Mares says plant pigments called luteins, and vitamin C, seem to explain some of the reasons for the benefit. Both protect eyes against damage from light.

The study in Archives of Ophthalmology was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: November 21, 2011