Vitamin A to improve the vision of diabetics

To improve the vision of people with type 2 diabetes and prevent diabetic retinopathy, American researchers recommend vitamin A supplementation. Diabetic retinopathy is a serious complication of type 2 diabetes: it occurs when excess sugar in blood (chronic hyperglycemia) leads to rupture and then bursting of the small blood vessels (capillaries) in the retina. Diabetic retinopathy affects around 50% of patients and is the main cause of blindness after the age of 65. Researchers at the University of Oklahoma (in the United States) may have just discovered a way to prevent vision problems that are the first signs of diabetic retinopathy. In their work (published in the specialized journal The American Journal of Pathology), scientists claim that vitamin A supplementation would preserve the vision of people with diabetes. To reach this conclusion, the American researchers worked with 3 groups of mice: the first group (composed of diabetic mice) received an injection of retinaldehyde – one of the 3 forms of vitamin A. The second group (also composed diabetic mice) received a placebo. The third group (of non-sick mice) was a “control group”.
Verdict? The mice in the first group (who received vitamin A supplementation) had better vision than the mice in group 2. “Our hypothesis is that diabetes leads to disturbances in the metabolism of vitamin A, which promotes disorders of the vision announcers of diabetic retinopathy “explain the researchers.
If additional studies are obviously necessary to confirm these results, this work underlines the importance of vitamin A in the diet. The best sources of vitamin A are: beef liver, sweet potato, spinach, carrots, mango, pumpkin, dandelion, apricot and melon.
Without forgetting the cod liver oil: 1 tsp. to s. (15 ml) of this unappetizing food provides 15,000 international units (IU) of vitamin A, while the recommended daily intake is approximately 2400 IU for women!

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