Vitamin D supplements could protect eyesight
The benefits that vitamin D brings to our body and bones have been well highlighted, but new research suggests that it also has the power to protect our eyesight.
Vitamin D supplements may help slow a condition called age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to experts from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London following trials on mice.
The study team discovered that when old mice were given vitamin D for just six weeks, a form of age-related inflammation that naturally occurs in the back of the eyes was reduced. The tests showed that this led to an improvement in their vision.
The demanding task of detecting light and communicating with the brain over time causes this inflammation; this in turn reduce the numbers of light-receptive cells in the eye by a third by time humans reach around 70, resulting in poorer vision.
By giving the mice increased levels of vitamin D the researchers found that the damage to the eye was reduced and cells which could harm eyesight actually re-configured themselves, reducing inflammation and also clearing up toxic deposits that can trigger AMD.
“Researchers need to run full clinical trials in humans before we can say confidently that older people should start taking vitamin D supplements,” explained lead researcher Professor Glen Jeffrey. “But there is growing evidence that many of us in the Western world are deficient in vitamin D and this could be having significant health implications.”