Oily fish intake may reduce risk of developing neovascular AMD, study suggests

Eating oily fish containing docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid at least once a week appears to decrease the risk of developing wet age-related macular degeneration by half, according to a large population-based study.

Working at seven centers across Europe, Cristina Augood, MD, and colleagues with the European Eye Study (EUREYE) group evaluated the possible association between dietary docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid — both found in oily fish — and AMD among 105 patients with wet AMD and a control group of 2,170 participants without AMD. All patients underwent fundus photography and were interviewed using a food-frequency questionnaire to measure nutrient intake.

Participants were at least 65 years old at baseline.

The investigators found that 64% of the study population consumed oily fish less than once per week, 25% consumed oily fish once per week and 12% consumed oily fish at least twice weekly.

Compared with participants who ate oily fish less than once per week, eating oily fish at least once per week reduced the risk of developing neovascular AMD by half (P = .002), the authors noted.

After adjusting for energy, the investigators found that dietary intake of docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid was associated with a reduced risk of neovascular AMD (P = .01).

The odds ratio for developing neovascular AMD among patients in the highest quartile of docosahexaenoic acid intake was 0.32 (P = .03); the odds ratio for disease developments among patients in the highest quartile of eicosapentaenoic acid intake was 0.29 (P = .02), according to the study.

"Compared with the lowest quartile, there was a significant trend for decreased odds with increasing quartiles of either [docosahexaenoic acid[ or [eicosapentaenoic acid]," the study authors said in the August issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.