Carbohydrate Consumption and Cataract Risk

We have long heard that a diet high in carbohydrates may be associated with a number of serious health conditions. Now research adds cataracts to that already-long list. Although the possible connection between carbohydrates and cataracts has been public knowledge for about five years, the weight of evidence has been split on the significance of the association.

In 2005, the US Department of Agriculture first put out its warning that a diet rich in carbohydrates could as much as double a woman's risk of developing cataracts. The USDA based its warning on a small study that looked at cataract diagnosis and carbohydrate consumption in 417 women aged 53 to 73. The study found that women who consumed a diet rich in carbohydrates (200-268 grams per day) were more than twice as likely to develop cataracts those who consumed a diet lower in carbohydrates (101-185 grams per day).

However, another study, published earlier the same year, looked at approximately 72,000 women and 40,000 men, showed did not seem to be a link between glycemic load and cataract risk.. study participants were followed for about 14 years (women) and 12 years (men). The study looked at subjects' dietary glycemic load, the elevated glucose levels in a person's blood that occurs primarily as a result of refined carbohydrate consumption. The study administrators adjusted for age, smoking, body mass index, and other factors before seeming to exclude a glycemic load/cataract risk tie. This study has been criticized as having excluded too many factors (including total calorie consumption and other dietary factors) and therefore conflated its results.

Since 2005, two other studies have added support to a connection between high levels of carbohydrate consumption and increased cataract risk. A 2006 study looked at the diets of 3377 participants aged 60-80 and sought a connection with cataract risk. The study analyzed glycemic loads of the participants and gauged this against cataract diagnosis. It found that those in the highest quartile of glycemic load were 1.29-1.43 times more likely to be diagnosed with two types of cataracts compared to those in the lowest quartile. A more recent study, following up on the results of the 2006 study, looked at the diet and cataract risks of 1609 subjects. The results seemed to indicate that one type of cataract was 3.19 times more likely in the highest quartile of carbohydrate consumption than in the lowest. Unfortunately, as with previous studies, there is a possibility that missing data on confounding factors could be obscuring the existence or nonexistence of a connection.

There are many reasons to consider shifting to a diet lower in carbohydrates. To learn whether cataracts are one of them, please contact a local ophthalmologist today.