A salmon a day keeps the eye doc away - diet high in omega-3 fatty acids can prevent macular degeneration - Brief Article

Men's Fitness, Jan, 2002

High intake of several types of fat has been linked to an increased risk of age-related macular degeneration, an untreatable eye disease, but one specific fat decreases that risk. Researchers at Harvard Medical School found that those who consumed higher amounts of monounsaturated fats (olive oil), polyunsaturated fats (margarine, peanut butter) and linoleic acid (corn and safflower oils) had more than twice the risk of AMD than a control group.

However, individuals whose diets were low in linoleic acid but rich in omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon, tuna, mackerel and other cold-water fish, had less association with the disease. Even at high levels, a monounsaturated-fat diet was 18 percent less risky than a polyunsaturated-fat diet.

The study appeared in the Archives of Ophthalmology.