AMD risk reduced by Vit B and folic acid

Taking a combination of vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid appears to decrease the risk of age-related macular degeneration in women,  according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Recent studies have drawn a connection between AMD and blood levels of  homocysteine, an amino acid. Treatment with B6, B12 and folic acid  appears to reduce homocysteine levels and reverse the blood vessel  dysfunction.

Researchers at the US Harvard Medical School conducted a randomized,  double-blind trial involving 5,442 women aged 40 and older who already  had heart disease or at least three risk factors. Of these, 5,205 did  not have AMD at the beginning of the study. In April 1998, these women  were randomly assigned to take a placebo or a combination of folic acid  (2.5mg per day), pyridoxine HcL (vitamin B6, 50mg per day) and  cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12, 1mg per day). Participants continued the  therapy through July 2005 and were tracked for the development of AMD  through November 2005.