Carrots, the Vegetable Which Protects Your Eyes Against Glaucoma, Scientists Find

Carrots may have a profound and positive effect on improving the health of vision, particularly in the elderly, some scientists suggested.

In comparison to visual health, vision impairment is a condition of functional limitation of the eye or visual system. In severe cases, the condition can lead to a complete loss of vision.

In older people, vision loss is a major healthcare problem. Approximately one person in three has some form of vision-reducing eye disease by the age of 65.


The most common causes of vision loss among the elderly are associated with age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataract, and diabetic retinopathy.

Dr. J R Evans, the lead author, and colleagues in the study" Causes of visual impairment in people aged 75 years and older in Britain: an add-on study to the MRC Trial of Assessment and Management of Older People in the Community" wrote, "...with review of the general practice medical notes where the main cause was attributed in 65% of cases with multiple conditions".


These results suggested that the causes of visual impairment were not contributed by a single factor but a combination of several influencers.

Carrot, a root vegetable with an orange color is a subspecies of Daucus carota, belonging to the family Apiaceae, native to Asian and Europe.

In a study to explore the association between the consumption of fruits and vegetables and the presence of glaucoma researchers launched an investigation including a sample of 1,155 women located in multiple centers in the United States.

Participants were diagnosed by glaucoma specialists in at least one eye by assessing optic nerve head photographs and 76-point suprathreshold screening visual fields.


Consumption of fruits and vegetables was assessed using the Block Food Frequency Questionnaire.

At the final report, researchers suggested that
* The odds of glaucoma risk were decreased by 69% in women who consumed at least one serving per month of green collards and kale compared with those who consumed fewer than one serving per month.


* in women who consumed more than two servings per week of carrots compared with those who consumed fewer than one serving per week, and by 64%.


These results suggested that carrot consumption has a significant effect on reducing glaucoma risk compared to green collards and kale.

Additionally, in the study including 662 older African-American women to explore the association between the consumption of fruits and vegetables and the presence of glaucoma, researchers showed that after taking a careful view of the assessment by 2 glaucoma specialists reviewed of photographs and visual fields and the returned Food Frequency Questionnaire assessed food consumption.

* Glaucoma was diagnosed in at least 1 eye in 77 subjects (13%)

* Women who ate 3 or more servings/day of fruits/fruit juices were 79%

* Higher consumption of carrots (P = .061) and spinach (P = .094) showed a protective trend against glaucoma

Vegetables and fruits containing a high amount of vitamin A, vitamin C, α-carotene and β-carotene and lutein/zeaxanthin showed a significant effect in reducing the rike of glaucoma.

Dr. Giaconi JA, the lead author said, "Higher intake of certain fruits and vegetables high in vitamins A and C and carotenoids may be associated with a decreased likelihood of glaucoma in older African-American women".

In the clarification of the question of should older people eat more carrots or at least increase their carotene intake to prevent loss of night vision?, researchers a the Australian National University, launched a study including participants in the Blue Mountains Eye Study with a question about their ability to see in the dark.

After examining the returned Nutrient and food intake estimated from a food frequency questionnaire, researchers found that
* Increased consumption of carrots, but no other food high in beta-carotene was associated with significantly increased reporting of poor night vision among women

* Carrot intake may protect against difficulty in seeing at night.

Taken altogether, carrots with abundant vitamin A and C may be considered a functional food in reducing the risk of age-related glaucoma and improving the vision health in the elderly.


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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

Sources
(1) Glaucoma risk and the consumption of fruits and vegetables among older women in the study of osteoporotic fractures by Coleman AL1, Stone KL, Kodjebacheva G, Yu F, Pedula KL, Ensrud KE, Cauley JA, Hochberg MC, Topouzis F, Badala F, Mangione CM; Study of Osteoporotic Fractures Research Group(PubMed)
(2) The association of consumption of fruits/vegetables with decreased risk of glaucoma among older African-American women in the study of osteoporotic fractures by Giaconi JA1, Yu F, Stone KL, Pedula KL, Ensrud KE, Cauley JA, Hochberg MC, Coleman AL; Study of Osteoporotic Fractures Research Group(PubMed)
(3) Carrots, carotene and seeing in the dark by Smith W1, Mitchell P, Lazarus R.(PubMed)