Antioxidants in leafy green
vegetables offer powerful protection against cataracts,
UV damage
December 26, 2004
Once again, here's how a common medical disorder (cataracts)
is almost entirely preventable through nutrition. And
it's not just lutein and zeaxanthin that can prevent
cataracts, it's also astaxanthin, a powerful antioxidant
found in microalgae.
News summary:
- Lutein and zeaxanthin, carotenoids found in dark
leafy green vegetables, were nearly 10 times more
powerful than the antioxidant vitamin E in protecting
human eye cells from UV-induced damage, report US
researchers.
- Their findings support previous evidence suggesting
that the natural compounds could help prevent cataracts,
which affect nearly 20 million people in the United
States alone and require expensive, surgical treatment.
- "Along with the many environmental, lifestyle
and genetic risk factors associated with cataracts,
exposure to ultraviolet radiation from sunlight and
oxidative stress appear to be the most relevant in
this disease," said study co-author Joshua Bomser.
- The Ohio researchers treated human eye lens cells
with varying concentrations of lutein, zeaxanthin
or vitamin E. They then exposed these cells, along
with a batch of untreated cells, to doses of ultraviolet-beta
radiation for 10 seconds.
- UVB radiation is thought to be the primary environmental
culprit in causing skin cancer as well as initiating
cataract disease.
- "The dose of UVB radiation we used on the cells
is about the same amount a person receives when they
get a mild tan," Bomser said.
- Adding lutein and zeaxanthin to the cell cultures
provided double the protection from UVB damage --
the antioxidants reduced signs of damage by 50 to
60 per cent, while vitamin E only reduced the same
signs of damage by 25 to 32 per cent, according to
the study in this month's issue of the Journal of
Nutrition.
- "The lens is equipped with antioxidant defense
mechanisms designed to guard against the harmful effects
of ultraviolet radiation and oxidative stress,"
Bomser said.
Source:www.newstarget.com
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