AREDS2 formula doesn’t contain beta carotene, reducing the risk of lung cancer.
New research data from the National Eye Institute (NEI) confirm that dietary supplements can decrease the progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). In a report on a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study recently published in JAMA Ophthalmology, investigators examined 10 years’ worth of data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Studies (AREDS and AREDS2).1,2
They discovered that the AREDS2 formula—which substituted antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin for beta carotene—not only reduces the risk of lung cancer from beta carotene but is also more effective in reducing the risk of AMD progression, compared with the original formula, according to an NIH news release.3
Emily Chew, MD, director of the NEI’s Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Application, as well as lead author of the study report, said that because taking beta carotene increased the risk of lung cancer for current smokers in 2 NIH-supported studies, the goal with AREDS2 was to create an equally effective supplement formula that could be used by both smokers and nonsmokers.
“This 10-year data confirm that not only is the new formula safer, it’s actually better at slowing AMD progression,” Chew stated in the release.
The original AREDS study—launched in 1996—found that a formula of dietary supplements (500 mg of vitamin C, 400 international units of vitamin E, 2 mg of copper, 80 mg of zinc, and 15 mg of beta carotene) could significantly slow the progression of AMD from moderate to late disease, according to the release. Despite this, 2 parallel studies found that the risk of lung cancer in individuals who took beta carotene and smoked was significantly higher than anticipated…..
Read more: https://www.optometrytimes.com/view/supplements-slow-amd-progression-study-data-confirm?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=09212022_OD_ALL-22-OTD0260_THE-22-OTD0284_Eyecon-22_eNL_Allergan%20Presbyopia%20TRC_Thea%20Pharmaceuticals&eKey=ZG9ubmFAbWFjdWxhcmhvcGUub3Jn
Source: Optometry Times