Research: Increased Intake Of Omega-3 Increases Eye Health

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Increased dietary intake of omega-3-polyunsaturated fatty acids found to reduce the risk of pathological retinal angiogenesis

DHA is a major structural component of retinal photoreceptor membranes, and it affects the permeability, fluidity and thickness of these membranes. EPA is the precursor to eicosanoids, hormone-like substances that control vasodilation/constriction (the widening/narrowing of blood vessels, the process regulates blood flow and pressure), blood coagulation and inflammation all of which affect eye health. Studies looking at the relationship of omega-3 to the prevalence of advanced macular degeneration (AMD) have also observed a protective effect.

Pathological angiogenesis is the abnormal, and rapid, proliferation of blood vessels, often driven by a lack of oxygen; it is implicated in age-related macular degeneration, while a similar process called neovascularization is implicated in diabetic retinopathy. This study examined the effect of omega-3- and omega-6-polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on vascular loss, vascular regrowth after injury, and hypoxia-induced (oxygen deficiency) pathological neovascularization in a mouse model of retinopathy. Increasing tissue levels of omega-3 was associated with a decrease in the area of the retina not dependant on blood vessel supply linked to an increase in blood vessel re-growth after injury, thus reducing the possibility of oxygen deficiency arising. The protective effect was linked, partly, to suppression of the inflammatory mediator tumor necrosis factor-a.

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