No matter how much lutein you take, it won't help~ Just because I love this one flavor

As the saying goes, "A cigarette after a meal makes you as happy as a god." Many men in China have this habit, but the impact of smoking on health is not limited to cardiovascular disease, it can even damage your eyes! A few days ago, a 52-year-old male heavy smoker with a smoking history of more than 10 years complained of blurred vision, especially a slight distortion in the center of his vision. After further examination, it was found that this middle-aged man already had "macular degeneration".

Don’t think that macular degeneration only occurs in the elderly. In fact, drug addicts should be more careful! According to foreign research, smoking is a high-risk factor for macular degeneration, and smokers are 2 to 5 times more likely to develop the disease than non-smokers. Chen Yingshan, director of the Department of Ophthalmology at Cathay General Hospital in Hsinchu, pointed out that nicotine in cigarettes causes poor blood circulation and excessive oxidation reactions, and reduces the absorption of lutein, further reducing the antioxidant effect in the blood vessels and the ability of photoreceptor cells to eliminate waste, causing oxidative damage to the retina.

Nicotine inhibits antioxidant activity in the macula

Dr. Chen Yingshan explained that the retina, choroid, and sclera of the eye are closely connected to each other, and the choroid is responsible for supplying nutrients to the retina. If the body has three high conditions, the blood vessels will become more fragile in the long run, which will also affect the function of the choroid to supply nutrients, and gradually reduce the lutein concentration in the macula. When blood flow is not smooth, the macula cannot absorb nutrients smoothly, which can easily lead to macular degeneration.

At the same time, because the macula is the structure with the highest oxidative stress in the body, when nicotine inhibits the antioxidant function of the macula, it also makes addicts more susceptible to macular degeneration. Dr. Chen Yingshan further stated that "smoking" will also affect the absorption of lutein, especially for patients with three highs. Lutein is a fat-soluble nutrient that likes to be stored in fat. If people are overweight, it will cause the lutein to run into the fat, reducing the lutein content in the blood and eyes, thereby reducing the protective ability of the macula.

Although macular degeneration is a common eye disease among the elderly, the disease has tended to become younger in recent years due to changes in eye habits caused by 3C.

Three groups of people with macular disease should be careful

Dr. Chen Yingshan emphasized that although macular degeneration is a common eye disease among the elderly, the disease has tended to become younger in recent years due to changes in eye habits caused by 3C. However, in addition to age and excessive use of 3C, which can easily cause macular degeneration, bad lifestyle habits such as smoking, obesity and the three highs also greatly increase the risk of macular degeneration. These three groups of people must be careful to maintain the health of the macula.

Just imagine, if you add the habit of smoking, nicotine has already affected the contraction of blood vessels, and obesity has caused lutein to be unable to be properly absorbed. In this way, the chance of suffering from macular degeneration will be even greater. Therefore, overweight people should maintain a normal weight through exercise and diet control to prevent lutein from "escaping" into the fat, thus maintaining eye health.

In general, in order to prevent macular degeneration, in addition to changing eye habits and using 3Cs in moderation, you must also avoid bad lifestyle habits. By quitting smoking, losing weight, and keeping blood pressure, blood lipids, and blood sugar within normal ranges, you can maintain a healthy macula. In addition, you should avoid being in a strong light environment for a long time and consume more dark green vegetables such as kale, broccoli, spinach and other foods rich in lutein.