Trending News: Study suggests certain foods bad for your sight
Do you like eating value meals at fast-food restaurants? You know what I’m talking about, right? The deals where you get a big, juicy burger with a box of french-fries on the side. Like washing it all down with a shake?
If the answer is yes, you aren’t alone. Occasionally, I like eating those kinds of meals too. But a recent study conducted by the University of Buffalo has me rethinking my diet.
According to a press release put out by the university, people who have a diet high in red meat, fried and processed foods and high fat dairy – are three times more likely to develop a condition called late-stage age-related macular degeneration or AMD for short.
The press release advises that AMD is irreversible, robbing the person of basic activities of daily living, such as driving a car.
Shruti Dighe, one of the investigators involved in the study, said the following: “Treatment for late, neovascular AMD is invasive and expensive, and there is no treatment for geographic atrophy, the other form of late AMD that also causes vision loss. It is in our best interest to catch this condition early and prevent development of late AMD.”
Dighe and colleagues assessed the food intake from 66 volunteers who self-reported their dietary intake from 1987 to 1995. They were able to identify two patterns: healthy and unhealthy.
To cut to the chase, the unhealthy dietary patterns linked increased risk of AMD included (high) consumption of red and processed meat, fried food, refined grains and high-fat dairy.
“What we observed in this study was that people who had no AMD or early AMD at the start of our study and reported frequently consuming unhealthy foods were more likely to develop vison-threatening, late-stage disease approximately 18 years later,” stated Amy Millen, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology and environmental health at UB.
It should be noted that a previously conducted study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology found no association between a typical Western diet (processed foods and fried foods) and AMD.
Apparently, the jury is still out regarding the vision-related health risks of certain foods. More research needs to be done to reach a consensus.
That said, on some level, it just makes sense (to me) that unhealthy eats, like burgers, french fries and processed foods negatively impact vision. We already know their adverse impact on cholesterol, weight and skin.
The old saying, “Everything in moderation” comes to mind when reflecting on this topic. Still, I am going to be more mindful the next time I pull into a drive-through to get my fast-food on. AMD runs in my family and I don’t want to do anything that might accelerate this condition in me.
Do you think there is a relationship between unhealthy food vision?
