An orange a day keeps eye disease at bay, study finds

EATING oranges regularly could be the key to preventing one of the most common eye problems affecting the elderly.

People who eat at least one serving of the fruit every day could reduce by more than 60 per cent their risk of developing late macular degeneration 15 years later, according to a study.

Researchers at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research in Sydney interviewed and followed more than 2,000 adults. Even eating an orange once a week seemed to offer significant benefits, their study found.

Prof Bamini Gopinath, who led the research, said that the flavonoids in oranges appear to help prevent macular degeneration, which affects one in seven people over the age of 50. There is no cure for it.

Flavonoids are powerful antioxidants found in almost all fruits and vegetables. “We examined common foods that contain flavonoids, such as tea, apples, red wine and oranges,” Prof Gopinath said. “Significantly, the data did not show a relationship between other food sources protecting the eyes against the disease.”