Vitamin C supplement may be associated with higher risk for age-related cataract in women

A study from the Swedish Mammography Cohort found that for women aged 65 years and older, use of a vitamin C supplement increased risk of cataract by 38%.

In addition, the study found that for those women who used vitamin C supplement compared with those who did not, the multivariable HR was 1.25. For those who used multivitamins that contained vitamin C, the HR was 1.09.

“Our results indicate that the use of vitamin C supplements may be associated with higher risk of age-related cataract among women,” the authors wrote.

The population-based prospective cohort study looked at 24,593 women aged 49 to 83 who were included in the Swedish Mammography Cohort. Information on dietary supplement use of vitamin C supplements (1,000 mg) and vitamin C in multivitamins (60 mg) was collected, along with lifestyle factors, through a self-administered questionnaire.

During 8.2 years of follow-up, the researchers found 2,497 cases of cataract extraction in the cohort. They found that use of vitamin C in duration of 10 years or more before baseline resulted in a HR of 1.46.

For subjects on hormone therapy who also took vitamin C compared with those who did not use supplements or HT, there was a 56% increased risk for cataract.

Rautiainen S. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;doi:10.3945/ajcn.2009.28528.