Can micronutrients help DR?

Researchers in The Netherlands have concluded that dietary intake or plasma levels of vitamins C and E and magnesium do not seem to be associated with diabetic retinopathy.

Publishing their results in the January issue of Ophthalmology the group examined 15 studies comprising 4094 patients. For vitamin C, hospital-based studies reported an inverse association between plasma levels with retinopathy, whereas population-based studies showed no association between dietary intake and retinopathy. For vitamin E, there was no association with dietary intake or plasma levels and retinopathy. For magnesium, a single prospective analysis showed an association between low levels in plasma and progression of retinopathy, but cross-sectional studies reported inconsistent results. In the assessment of quality, population-based studies had higher ratings than hospital-based studies.