The Combination of Healthy Diet and Healthy Body Weight Is Associated with Lower Risk of Nuclear Cataract in the Blue Mountains Eye Study

Association between Healthy Eating Index-2015 and Age-Related Cataract in American Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study of NHANES 2005-2008

BACKGROUND

Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015), a healthy eating pattern proposed by Dietary Guidelines for Americans, is proven to be protective against various diseases. However, whether it is associated with age-related cataracts is unknown.

METHODS

This population-based cross-sectional study included 6395 participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) in the cycles from 2005 to 2008. HEI-2015 was calculated from 24-h dietary recall interviews, ranging from 0 to 100, and higher HEI-2015 represents better diet quality. Age-related cataract was generated from the questionnaire. The association between HEI-2015 and cataract was assessed with logistic regression models. Propensity score weighting, restricted cubic spline, and subgroup analysis were conducted to further explore the relationship.

RESULTS

6395 participants were included in the study, with a mean [standard deviation (SD)] age of 48.7 (15.3) years and 3115 (48.7%) being male. HEI-2015 was negatively associated with cataracts after adjusting all covariates included, both as a continuous variable [odds ratio (OR): 0.991, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.984-0.997, p = 0.006] and quartiles with the highest quartile compared to the lowest (OR: 0.739, 95% CI: 0.559-0.980, p = 0.035). After propensity score weighting, the association remained significant. Restricted cubic spline revealed no non-linear relationship (p for non-linearity 0.085). Subgroup analysis showed that there were no interaction effects.

CONCLUSIONS

Adherence to the healthy eating pattern, HEI-2015, was associated with a lower risk of age-related cataracts.

Traditional and Dairy Products and Vegetables Dietary Patterns Are Inversely Associated with the Risk of Cataract in the Middle Age and Aged Population: A Case-Control Study

OBJECTIVES

Cataract is one of the most common causes of visual impairment and blindness in the world. In the present study, we have been trying to investigate the relationship between major dietary patterns and cataract.

DESIGN

This was a case-control study.

SETTING

An ophthalmology outpatient clinic of Khatam al-Anbia Hospital, in Shoushtar city.

PARTICIPANTS

336 subjects (168 patients with cataract and 168 healthy ones), from 40 to 80 years old, were recruited.

MEASUREMENTS

A socio-demographic questionnaire was used to record the demographic information. A food frequency questionnaire was used to determine the foods consumed during the last year. The principal component analysis was used to extract major dietary patterns. The possible relationship between the major dietary patterns and cataract was assessed by multivariable logistic regression models.

RESULTS

We tried to eliminate the effect of cofactors. The results showed "dairy products and vegetables" dietary pattern had a negative association with cataract (OR: 0.301, 95%CI =0.137-0.658, P trend =0.002). The fourth quartile of the "traditional" dietary pattern also showed a protective role against the cataract (OR: 0.393, 95%CI =0.184-0.842, P trend = 0.036). The third and fourth quartiles of "carbohydrate and simple sugar" pattern were more related with cataract compared to the first quartile (OR: 3.574, 95%CI =1.665-7.671, and OR: 5.067, 95%CI =2.265-11.335, P trend <0.001 respectively). No significant association was found between «nuts, seeds and simple sugar" dietary pattern and cataract.

CONCLUSION

It seems a dietary pattern rich in proteins and vegetables can decrease the risk of cataract in middle-aged and aged subjects.

Dietary Patterns, Carbohydrates, and Age-Related Eye Diseases

Over a third of older adults in the U.S. experience significant vision loss, which decreases independence and is a biomarker of decreased health span. As the global aging population is expanding, it is imperative to uncover strategies to increase health span and reduce the economic burden of this age-related disease. While there are some treatments available for age-related vision loss, such as surgical removal of cataracts, many causes of vision loss, such as dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), remain poorly understood and no treatments are currently available. Therefore, it is necessary to better understand the factors that contribute to disease progression for age-related vision loss and to uncover methods for disease prevention. One such factor is the effect of diet on ocular diseases. There are many reviews regarding micronutrients and their effect on eye health. Here, we discuss the impact of dietary patterns on the incidence and progression of age-related eye diseases, namely AMD, cataracts, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma. Then, we focus on the specific role of dietary carbohydrates, first by outlining the physiological effects of carbohydrates on the body and then how these changes translate into eye and age-related ocular diseases. Finally, we discuss future directions of nutrition research as it relates to aging and vision loss, with a discussion of caloric restriction, intermittent fasting, drug interventions, and emerging randomized clinical trials. This is a rich field with the capacity to improve life quality for millions of people so they may live with clear vision for longer and avoid the high cost of vision-saving surgeries.