Eating oily fish may reduce risk for neovascular AMD, research suggests.

In continuing coverage from previous editions of First Look, Medscape (8/12, Barclay, Nghiem) reported that eating oily fish, "the major source of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)," at least once a week may be "linked to a reduced risk for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NV-AMD)," according to a study published in the Aug. issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. For the study, researchers from the U.K.'s London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine examined data from "[p]articipants aged 65 years or older" who were enrolled "in the cross-sectional, population-based European Eye Study." The participants "underwent fundus photography," then "were interviewed with use of a food-frequency questionnaire." Dietary data "and fundus images were available for 105 case patients with NV-AMD, and 2,170 control subjects without any features of early or late AMD." The researchers found that "eating oily fish at least once per week or more, vs. less than once per week, was associated with a halving of the odds of NV-AMD." Medscape noted that the "main dietary source of DHA and EPA is oily fish, such as mackerel, tuna, salmon, sardines, and herring."