CUP OF COFFEE A DAY TO KEEP RETINAL DAMAGE AWAY
Coffee drinkers,
rejoice! Aside from java's energy jolt, food scientists say you may reap
another health benefit from a daily cup of joe: prevention of deteriorating
eyesight and possible blindness from retinal degeneration due to glaucoma,
aging and diabetes
Raw coffee is, on
average, just 1 percent caffeine, but it contains 7 to 9 percent chlorogenic
acid (CLA), a strong antioxidant that prevents retinal degeneration in mice,
according to a Cornell study published in theJournal of Agricultural and
Food Chemistry(December 2013).
The retina is a thin
tissue layer on the inside, back wall of the eye with millions of
light-sensitive cells and other nerve cells that receive and organize visual
information. It is also one of the most metabolically active tissues, demanding
high levels of oxygen and making it prone to oxidative stress. The lack of
oxygen and production of free radicals leads to tissue damage and loss of
sight.
In the study, mice
eyes were treated with nitric oxide, which creates oxidative stress and free
radicals, leading to retinal degeneration, but mice pretreated with CLA
developed no retinal damage.
The study is
"important in understanding functional foods, that is, natural foods that
provide beneficial health effects," said Chang Y. Lee, professor of food
science and the study's senior author. Holim Jang, a graduate student in Lee's
lab, is the paper's lead author. Lee's lab has been working with Sang Hoon
Jung, a researcher at the Functional Food Center of the Korea Institute of
Science and Technology in South Korea. "Coffee is the most popular drink
in the world, and we are understanding what benefit we can get from that,"
Lee said.
Previous studies have
shown that coffee also cuts the risk of such chronic diseases as Parkinson's,
prostate cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's and age-related cognitive declines.
Since scientists know
that CLA and its metabolites are absorbed in the human digestive system, the
next step for this research is to determine whether drinking coffee facilitates
CLA to cross a membrane known as the blood-retinal barrier. If drinking coffee
proves to deliver CLA directly into the retina, doctors may one day recommend
an appropriate brew to prevent retinal damage. Also, if future studies further
prove CLA's efficacy, then synthetic compounds could also be developed and
delivered with eye drops.
The Korea Institute of
Science and Technology funded the study.
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