A new study shows that women with the highest levels of vitamin D in their bodies are two-thirds less likely to develop age-related macular degeneration, the most common cause of blindness in the elderly. The study found that drinking milk helps women avoid the eye disease.
Each year, 200,000 people in the UK are affected by age-related macular degeneration. Although laser surgery and medication can reduce the damage caused by the disease, there are currently no preventive treatments. Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in people over 50. The disease damages a person's central vision, making it impossible for them to read, drive, or even recognize faces.
Researchers at the University at Buffalo in New York, after analyzing data from 1,313 women who took part in a survey of age-related eye diseases, found that in women under 75, a lower risk of early age-related macular degeneration was closely related to vitamin D levels in the blood and vitamin intake from food and supplements. Compared to women with the lowest vitamin D intake, those with the highest intake had a 59% lower chance of developing the disease.
However, a report published in a recent issue of the *Journal of the American Medical Association* says that this preventive effect only appears when vitamin D is obtained from food intake and nutritional supplements. Although sunlight on the skin is the most important source for the body's own synthesis of vitamin D, exposure to sunlight does not reduce the risk.
The main food sources of vitamin D for the study participants were milk, fish, fortified margarine, and fortified cereals. Previous studies have also found that eating more fish oil rich in omega-3 also has a preventive effect.