A new study has found that individuals who exercise three or more times a week have a 58 percent decrease in becoming visually impaired compared to sedentary people.
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health published the study in the journal Ophthalmology. The study is based on data from almost 5,000 adults ages 43 to 84 that were part of the Beaver Dam Eye Study who were followed for 20 years. The study defines visual impairment as vision loss from disease or trauma that cannot be corrected with glasses or contact lenses.
However, the study only showed a connection between lifestyle factors and visual impairment so it’s not possible to confirm that these behaviors are the direct cause or prevention to visual impairment.
“Further research is needed to determine whether modifying these behaviors will in fact lead to a direct reduction in vision loss,” study researcher Dr. Ronald Klein, M.D., MPH, said.
Researchers also found that current and past cigarette smokers were more likely to experience vision problems than those who had never smoked.