title: Prospective study of dietary fat and risk of cataract extraction among US women.
abstract: The authors examined prospectively the association between dietary fat intake and cataract extraction in adult women from the Nurses' Health Study. A total of 71,083 women were followed prospectively for up to 16 years between 1984 and 2000. Dietary fat was assessed by repeated food frequency questionnaires. Incident cases of cataract extraction were determined by a biennial questionnaire. The multivariate-adjusted relative risk for the highest compared with the lowest quintile of total fat intake was 1.10 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.99, 1.22; p(trend) = 0.01). Women in the highest quintile of long-chain omega-3 fatty acid had a 12% lower risk of cataract extraction compared with those in the lowest quintile (relative risk = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.79, 0.98; p(trend) = 0.02). Total fish intake was inversely associated with cataract (for intake of > or = 3/week vs. <1/month: relative risk = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.81, 0.98; p(trend) = 0.01). The authors' findings suggest that higher intake of long-chain omega-3 fatty acid (eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid) and consumption of fish may modestly reduce the risk of cataract.
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Program, Jean Mayer US Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
authors.forename: Minyi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Eunyoung
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Allen
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Susan E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hankinson
authors.forename: Walter C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Willett
authors.forename: Paul F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Jacques
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002386:Cataract / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D002387:Cataract Extraction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000032:analysis*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000032:analysis; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology; D008593:Menopause; D008875:Middle Aged; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012306:Risk; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated