North Shore Shape Up: Oranges may help your eyesight

How’s your vision? If you’re squinting a lot or your optometrist is recommending stronger glasses, you may want to add an orange to your breakfast or lunch every day. Per Cleveland Clinic Wellness:

Among more than 2,000 adults over 50 who were followed for 15 years, researchers found that those whose daily menu included an orange had a more than 60 percent reduced risk of developing age-relation macular degeneration compared with those who didn’t eat oranges. Macular degeneration, a leading cause of vision loss, affects more than 2 million Americans and has no cure.

Compounds found in oranges known as flavonones help reduce inflammation and fight against oxidation. It’s not clear from the study that they are definitely beneficial for eyesight, but as the clinic notes, there are plenty of other nutritious reasons to eat oranges too. Watch the OJ, though — it’s got a lot of sugar and much less of the healthy fiber found in the whole fruit.

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