Research paper
Antioxidant vitamin and mineral supplements for slowing the progression of age-related macular degeneration.
Study answer
What this study found
Overall, antioxidant vitamin and mineral supplementation probably delays progression of age-related macular degeneration, with the strongest evidence from AREDS 2001 showing a modest reduction in progression to late AMD. Zinc has moderate-certainty evidence for reducing progression to late AMD and neovascular AMD, while vitamin E alone showed little evidence of benefit. In the VECAT 2002 vitamin E arm, progression to late AMD was not reduced (RR 1.36, 95% CI 0.31 to 6.05), and no serious adverse effects were reported. AREDS 2001 reported more yellow skin in the antioxidant arm than placebo…
- Study & population
- Systematic review/meta-analysis of randomized trials in people with age-related macular degeneration in one or both eyes, generally older adults.
- Intervention
- This review evaluated antioxidant vitamin and mineral supplementation for age-related macular degeneration, including AREDS-like multivitamin formulations, vitamin E alone, zinc alone, and lutein plus zeaxanthin.
- Key limitation
- The evidence base is dominated by AREDS/AREDS2 formulations, while many smaller and shorter trials were inconsistent or underpowered.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
BACKGROUND Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a degenerative condition of the back of the eye that occurs in people over the age of 50 years. Antioxidants may prevent cellular damage in the retina by reacting with free radicals that are produc…