Here she is again, that preachy zealot for clean living! How are you all doing?
I was looking for new info on AMD and I found this article.
I know I harp on this topic ad nauseam but seeing this in the new releases I could not help myself. I am basically weak (and can be profoundly irritating?).
Anyway, a recent article on nature.com presented research suggesting AMD does not like clean-living folks. People working on the Blue Mountain Eye Study evaluated a group in the late 1990s and then again 15 years later. They looked at physical activity, diet, smoking and alcohol consumption as it relates to AMD. After all was said and done, the researchers decided it would be helpful if people could be encouraged to engage in good health habits.
They quoted data that women who eat well, are physically active and don’t smoke are three times less likely to develop AMD than women who do not have a healthy lifestyle. If you add the complement factor H at risk allele into the mix, the poor souls who eat crap, don’t exercise and smoke really don’t have much of a chance of dodging the disease at all.
What I just quoted was an older study, CAREDS. It used only women. The Blue Mountain people decided to replicate it but to include both genders. They also added alcohol consumption as a variable.
Blue Mountain concluded the combined effects of the four, healthy living variables were better than only one of the habits alone. They hypothesized each of the healthy habits helps to reduce oxidative stress and therefore reduce inflammation, generally thought to be a huge factor in the development of AMD. [Lin/Linda: Sue talks explains what oxidative stress in her page Electron Rustlers.]
In addition, good health habits can affect the density of macular pigment. Thicker macular pigment can be protective. And BTW, levels of macular pigment can be negatively affected by obesity.
Since I always like to support our friends Down Under, I am making a pitch for healthy living just like the Blue Mountain people. Avoiding bad habits and developing good ones can decrease your chances of developing AMD. It can also reduce the rate of progression of the disease.
Hard to change habits? Absolutely. I am a carbs and salt girl. Horrible for me, but that is what I crave. I have never been a fruit eater.
However, since getting my diagnosis I am drinking a cup of fruit juice every morning. Enough of a change? I doubt it but at least I feel as if I am making the effort.
How long does it take to establish a habit? Google says 66 days. If you can change one thing in your lifestyle and stick with it for 66 days, you have dealt a blow against AMD. Lifestyle changes are one way we can take some of our power back from this disease. Worth a try.