Diet linked to lower cataract risk

Women with a higher concentration of antioxidants in their diet have a lower risk of age-related cataract, according to a study in Sweden.

Research published by JAMA Ophthalmology journal last month investigated the association between dietary antioxidants, including vegetables, whole grains and coffee, and cataract incidence for 30,607 females aged 49-83.

A total of 4,309 cases of age-related cataract were found over an average 7.7 years of follow-up, with a 13 per cent lower risk for patients with the highest total antioxidant capacity compared to those with the lowest.

The researchers at Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet added that further studies examining all antioxidants in the diet were needed to confirm or refute the findings.