Case #69: LifeMeter in Clinical Practice and the value of carotenoid testing in AMD – Page 15 of 28

Carotenoids in the management of AMD:

Observational Studies⁸

The majority of observational studies advocate the benefits of xanthophyll carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, meso-zeaxanthin) in AMD⁸:

• A meta-analysis by M et al. found that individuals with the highest levels of carotenoid intake saw a significant reduction in the risk of late AMD and specifically a 32% reduced risk for neovascular AMD¹⁵
•  Epidemiological data from Seddon et al. and Mares et al. showed that those who maintained diets high in dark, leafy-green foods over their lifetime, risk for developing AMD was 46% and 43% respectively^16,17
• One report from the Rotterdam Study found that higher dietary antioxidants (including lutein and zeaxanthin) may significantly attenuate early AMD incidence conferred by genetic risk variants¹⁸
• Multiple longitudinal cohort studies have demonstrated greater consumption of carotenoid-rich foods carry significant protection against incident late AMD.¹⁹