This from Scientific Blogging:
There's another reason to dust off those running shoes. Vigorous exercise may help prevent vision loss, according to a pair of studies from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The studies tracked approximately 31,000 runners for more than seven years, and found that running reduced the risk of both cataracts and age-related macular degeneration....The fittest men boasted one-half the risk of developing cataracts compared to the least-fit men.
Men who ran more than 5.7 miles per day had a 35 percent lower risk of
developing cataracts than men who ran less than 1.4 miles per day. The
study also analyzed men's 10-kilometer race performances, which is a
good indicator of overall fitness. The fittest men boasted one-half the
risk of developing cataracts compared to the least-fit men.
A second study found that running appeared to reduce the risk of
age-related macular degeneration. In the study, 152 men and women
reported being diagnosed with the disease. Compared to people who ran
less than 1.2 miles per day, people who averaged between 1.2 and 2.4
miles per day had a 19 percent lower risk for the disease, and people
who ran more than 2.4 miles per day had between 42 percent and 54
percent lower risk of the disease.
My mom had macular degeneration, and the impact on the quality of her life was exceedingly negative. Keep running those intervals! You can read the complete post here.
