Expert opinion
Closing the chapter on omega-3 fatty acids and age-related macular degeneration may be premature
14 December 2015
The results of the recent, comprehensive Age-Related Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) failed to support the prevailing view that marine omega-3 fatty acids could have a protective role in preventing the onset and progression of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD). Professor Eric Souied, Head of the Department of Ophthalmology at both the Hôpital Intercommunal de Créteil and the Hôpital Henri Mondor in France, has carefully reviewed the study and found that the null results could be due to methodological differences between this and other recent studies. He thinks that the evidence from laboratory and other clinical studies still provides hope that omega-3 fatty acids could provide benefits in relation to ARMD.