Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Age Related Macular Degeneration
1st November 2009
In a large 12 year study of elderly people at moderate to high risk of progression to advanced Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), persons who consumed the highest intake of Omega-3 Fatty Acids were 30% less likely to develop AMD, reports a recent US National Eye Institute study .
The authors conclude that ‘although experimental studies are needed to support this proposition, if these results are able to be generalised, they may guide the development of low cost and easily implemented preventive interventions for progression to advanced AMD’.
AMD is the leading cause of severe vision loss among elderly people, affecting the central area of the retina called the macula. The macula is a small area at the back of the eye which is responsible for fine and reading vision. Conditions affecting the macula reduce central vision, leaving the peripheral vision intact and can make some activities, like reading, difficult or impossible.
The two common forms of AMD are wet and dry. Most people have the dry type which causes thinning of the tissue at the macula with vision loss being gradual. The wet form is characterised by the development of abnormal vascular membranes beneath the retina which leak, eventually resulting in a scarred macula.
Unfortunately, the dry form has no effective treatment at present and the treatment is limited in the wet type. Thus the primary prevention of AMD by modifying risk factors remains an important health strategy, especially over the next 20 years as rates are anticipated to rise significantly due to ageing populations.
There is need for more evidence of effect but future studies supporting this hypothesis might be here sooner than we think with the Age Related Eye Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) underway. AREDS2 is a multi-centre randomized trial designed to assess the effects of oral supplementation of high doses of macular xanthophylls (lutein and zeaxanthin) and/or Omega-3 Fatty Acids (DHA and EPA) for the treatment of AMD and cataract, with results expected in 2014.
Until then, dietary intake of foods high in Omega-3 fatty acid is recommended for its growing number of positive health outcomes.
References available on request.
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