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This Forbes article discusses a finding that exercise can reduce age-related macular degeneration by 70%.

Exercise can reduce the risk of developing a more severe form of age-related eye trouble by 70%, researchers say.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a condition in which the light-sensitive cells in the macula at the back of the eye stop working. There are two types of AMD, dry and wet. Wet AMD is more highly linked to serious vision loss.

“We found that people who were more physically active had a reduced risk of developing late-stage AMD,” said study author Michael Knudtson, a biostatistician in the department of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Medicine and Public Health.

“This is just an association,” Knudtson cautioned. It’s not clear whether this association is causal or coincidental, he noted.

The report was published in the Oct. 31 online issue of the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Starting in 1988, Knudtson and colleagues collected data on nearly 3,900 men and women, aged 43 to 86, in Beaver Dam, Wisc. The patients underwent eye exams and were asked about the amount of exercise they got. They were then tracked every five years for 15 years.

The researchers found that one in four of the individuals maintained an active lifestyle, and almost one in four climbed more than six flights of stairs a day. About one in eight walked more than 12 blocks a day.

Knudtson’s group found that people with an active lifestyle were 70% less likely to develop the more serious wet AMD, compared with those who had a sedentary lifestyle. In addition, people who walked regularly were 30% less likely to develop wet AMD, they found.

Knudtson noted that other factors, such as diet, may also explain the findings. Yet physical activity is known to reduce inflammation, which is thought to play a part in AMD.

People who are physically active are also likely to be “biologically younger” than those with a sedentary lifestyle, which could also be important, since AMD is associated with aging, the researchers said.

While they point out that this is merely correlation (which does not equal causation), it is a salient finding. Exercise improves your skin and muscularity, lowers your blood pressure, regulates your bodyweight, and releases endorphins that make you feel good. Exercise also reduces your risk of heart disease, colon and breast cancer, diabetes, and depression. It’s good for so many things, why not your eyes too. A sedentary lifestyle is at odds with our genetic heritage – only in the late 20th century did humans become largely sedentary and we are paying the price with our life.

You don’t have to go out and run marathons or deadlift small automobiles. Even walking, while it’s not going to get you into great shape, is better than nothing. Throw in some resistance training and you can build some muscle at the same time. CrossFit is an excellent exercise program that is scalable for all ages. There are people as old as 70 and as young as 12 on CrossFit. Whatever you do, do something.

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