Foods high in saturated fats (risk foods)
• Fatty meats: beef, lamb, pork, processed meats (sausages, bacon)
• Dairy: butter, cheese, cream, whole milk, ice cream
• Baked goods: pastries, cookies, cakes made with butter or shortening
• Fast foods: fried chicken, burgers, pizza
• Coconut and palm oil products (though plant-based, they’re high in saturated fats)
So the takeaway is: More fish, nuts, and seeds may help protect children’s eyes, while too many fatty meats, butter, and fried foods may raise the risk of myopia.
There has historically been a lot of flawed research about saturated fat. Sugar and fat together is always fattening, and being obese comes with a lot of risk.
> Summary from GPT
This whole post is filled with bad implicit advice. No one should stop eating meat to make their eyesight better. No one should add canola oil to their diet as a source of Omega 3.
I have a fun omega-3 anecdata point going right now. A friend of mine researches the stuff in mouse models and told me it's extremely beneficial, but you need to buy a fancy brand to avoid rancid oil or heavy metal contamination both of which ~null out the benefits. She recommended Sports Research.
I bought some and started taking it and my 1:1 bullet chess ELO jumped from 850 to ~1070 over the next couple weeks.
I play chess a bit like sushi ginger for the mind - purge working memory with a short intense task to context switch. I intentionally don't study openings or anything so I can use it as a benchmark for mental horsepower with a reasonably slow drift in the baseline from 'actually learning chess'.
My friend says this effect is way too big to actually attribute to the vitamins and it has to be placebo etc but I'm thoroughly enjoying the idea that omega-3 Nick would win 3/4 bullet matches against deficient Nick.
Consumer Labs offers as a subscription service testing of various vitamins Including fish oil. They perform a great service, and I think it's economical in terms of determining if what you're buying is really what you want.
Heavy metal contamination is classically not a problem because the fish oil is distilled. My guess is your researcher friend has fallen victim to the marketing of the pharmacological industry-- Although I do want to indicate they do have value, probably not the 500 percent markup that they put on what in essence is a generic product.
Some natural fish oils are not distilled and do have this problem-- These are normally marketed as natural or cod liver oil or something that should hit your radar pretty quick. Your friend's concern about rancidity is clearly a problem And pretty well understood by people for years if you have any familiarity with chemistry. Omega threes get their name from the fact that you have a weird bend on the end of a long carbon molecule. This is susceptible to oxidation. This is true for any Omega 3 molecule regardless of its length Or it's sourcing.
This includes omega-3 "drugs" like Vascepa (pure EPA) and Lovaza (EPA and DHA combination).
Fortunately in testing, they have not found widespread issues with rancidity, although they definitely have found pockets. My normal suggestion to everybody is by a high volume manufacturer that you know is tearing through the product quite rapidly. My top suggestion is Costco. Then make sure you keep your fish oil in the refrigerator, and churn through it on a regular basis.
I also started taking the Sports Research omega-3 capsules early this year. Seems the consensus for taking any omega-3 is that it's single-source and wild caught which is why I chose that brand. My biggest benefit has been my eyesight with way less floaters.
However I started taking creatine this summer to help with my recovery from running now that I'm older. I will say I feel it's done more for my cognitive function than the omega-3 did.
How long was your bullet chess elo stable at 850 (and how often were you playing) before this experiment began? I'm asking because the act of playing constitutes practice, which could itself cause a rise in your elo. Bit of a confounding factor there, potentially.
You can also get Omega-3 from algae oil (which is where fish get it) to alleviate concerns about heavy metal content. Algae may have heavy metals but should have less than any fish. I know nothing about this particular product, but they came up when I searched for it: https://www.norsan-omega.com/algae-oil/
I do the same thing, except I subscribe to Thorne. I haven't noticed an uptick in perceived brain capacity, etc, but I can tell that my skin and hair are healthier. I started taking it because my cholesterol was all over the place and I desperately want to avoid taking a statin later in life. I'll be retesting that early next year. I've also started eating smoked salmon and canned sardines.
I used to take Nordic Naturals EPA Xtra for a long time in the past and when taking them I'd sometimes have days when my thinking was unusually fluid and clear, something I have never experienced while taking my current brand of Omega 3 (the European Moller's Omega 3 Extra). (There could definitely be other reasons too besides Omega 3 intake.)
The Sports Research Triple Strength capsules just like the Nordical Naturals have much more EPA than DHA (but the ratio is different), so I might give these a try too.
Another piece of personal anecdata related to Omega 3, is that I recently started taking most of it with dinner, and my sleep subjectively feels slightly better than when I used to take them earlier in the day.
This reminded me of the Knowledge Project podcast with Dr. Rhonda Patrick on certain biomarkers, including omega index as an indicator for longer life span.
Omega 3 helps manage triglycerides which when high make managing insulin difficult which results in the liver putting more glucose in the blood. This can create poor vision as high glucose damages eyes.
I hate to sound like one of those "Do Your Own Research" types, but as far as I can tell, there are only a few supplements that have repeatedly shown _some_ benefits in peer-reviewed replicated studies for general health:
Vitamin D, Omega 3, and possibly Magnesium and Creatine.
So I stopped taking a daily multivitamin and I just take modest doeses of these 4 supplemements every day.
Have not read the underlying study but given that it is a generic nutrition and vision study, this seems like a clear case of p-hacking. At best it could be a "here is something that might merit future research".
They find that one of the nutrient factors studied is positively correlated with improved vision at p=0.01. https://xkcd.com/882/
This is a small study (n=1005) that only included children age 6-8. The way they're shotgunning a long list of nutrients against a list of eye parameters screams p-hacking to me, so I wouldn't get excited about this result.
Omega-3 and fish oil stories always attract a lot of impossibly positive claims, but real-world studies are rarely as good as the anecdotes.
I would also caution people that fish oil isn't entirely benign to supplement with, despite common wisdom suggesting it's risk-free. Fish oil supplements can induce depressive-like symptoms in some people and high dose fish oil is a known trigger for mania in certain people with mood disorders. You can find countless puzzled posts from people wondering why fish oil is making them feel bad: https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Areddit.com+fish+oil+m...
These outcomes are unlikely, but watch for them. It's really sad when someone is taking high dose fish oil because they're desperate for depression relief and all of the influencers say it's good for depression, then months later they run out of pills for a few days and are surprised that they feel better.
Before I get accused of exaggerating anecdotes, there are also randomized clinical trials with an order of magnitude more patients than this study that show a slight increase in depression, opposite of the expected reduction in mood disorders: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2787320
Happened to me, already read all of these reddit comments. Fell into a massive depression the day after starting supplementation, extreme hopelessness. Had to stop, went away after a few days.
I was unable to access the OP's source, but I do want to point out there are several ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids with different nutrient characteristics. Thanks be to Chat G for banging this out, but I like many people have had this drilled in.
ALA (α-linolenic acid, 18:3 n-3) is an essential fatty acid. It's nutritional role is primarily as a precursor to the other ω-3 PUFAs, humans can elongate and desaturate ALA into longer-chain ω-3s (EPA, DPA, DHA), but the conversion efficiency is very limited (<5% to EPA, <1% to DHA for most people). ALA cannot be converted from EPA, DHA, or DPA. Sources are primarily plant oils (flaxseed, chia, walnuts, canola, soy). If this is your only source of ω-3 PUFAs, you're unhealthy.
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid, 20:5 n-3) is (conditionally) essential. Its role is anti-inflammatory, a precursor for resolvins, cardiovascular protection, eye and brain signaling, and a precursor to DHA synthesis in limited amounts. Sources are marine foods (fatty fish: salmon, mackerel, sardines, anchovies).
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid, 22:6 n-3) is (conditionally) essential. Its role is as a major structural lipid in the retina, brain, and neural tissues, visual function, cognitive development, and neuronal membranes. Sources are marine foods (same as EPA) plus algae oils.
DPA (docosapentaenoic acid, 22:5 n-3) is an intermediate between EPA and DHA. Don't know. Sources are fish and red meat (esp. grass-fed ruminants).
In practice EPA, DHA, and DPA conversion from ALA is too inefficient, so direct dietary sources (fish, seafood, algal oil) are the meaningful way humans obtain enough EPA/DHA. That's why nutrition guidelines (WHO, FAO, NIH, EFSA) often treat EPA + DHA as conditionally essential, especially for infants (where DHA is critical for retina and brain development) and for populations with low fish intake.
Eat fish. As always, a balanced and diverse diet is a key requirement for health. For those who don't know, sardines are less fishy than tuna (hardly at all IMO), cheap, widely accessible, and pretty sure they have low mercury risk.
30 comments
[ 2.9 ms ] story [ 88.6 ms ] threadOmega-3 fats seem to protect against myopia, while saturated fats seem to increase the risk. Other nutrients didn’t show clear effects.
Foods rich in omega-3 (protective foods) • Fatty fish: salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna, herring, anchovies • Seafood: oysters, mussels • Plant sources: flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts, hemp seeds • Oils: flaxseed oil, canola oil, soybean oil • Fortified foods: some eggs, dairy, or juices enriched with omega-3
Foods high in saturated fats (risk foods) • Fatty meats: beef, lamb, pork, processed meats (sausages, bacon) • Dairy: butter, cheese, cream, whole milk, ice cream • Baked goods: pastries, cookies, cakes made with butter or shortening • Fast foods: fried chicken, burgers, pizza • Coconut and palm oil products (though plant-based, they’re high in saturated fats)
So the takeaway is: More fish, nuts, and seeds may help protect children’s eyes, while too many fatty meats, butter, and fried foods may raise the risk of myopia.
> Summary from GPT
This whole post is filled with bad implicit advice. No one should stop eating meat to make their eyesight better. No one should add canola oil to their diet as a source of Omega 3.
A disappointing level of knowledge and sophistication in this late, 21st century era.
Your bone health is almost entirely correlated to the load bearing exercise and gravity stress that you put on your musculoskeletal system.
Fine optimizations to your diet (just like fine optimizations everywhere in life) are only sensible after you've taken care of the big, macro factors.
I bought some and started taking it and my 1:1 bullet chess ELO jumped from 850 to ~1070 over the next couple weeks.
I play chess a bit like sushi ginger for the mind - purge working memory with a short intense task to context switch. I intentionally don't study openings or anything so I can use it as a benchmark for mental horsepower with a reasonably slow drift in the baseline from 'actually learning chess'.
My friend says this effect is way too big to actually attribute to the vitamins and it has to be placebo etc but I'm thoroughly enjoying the idea that omega-3 Nick would win 3/4 bullet matches against deficient Nick.
https://www.chess.com/member/nickparkerprint/stats/bullet?da...
Heavy metal contamination is classically not a problem because the fish oil is distilled. My guess is your researcher friend has fallen victim to the marketing of the pharmacological industry-- Although I do want to indicate they do have value, probably not the 500 percent markup that they put on what in essence is a generic product.
Some natural fish oils are not distilled and do have this problem-- These are normally marketed as natural or cod liver oil or something that should hit your radar pretty quick. Your friend's concern about rancidity is clearly a problem And pretty well understood by people for years if you have any familiarity with chemistry. Omega threes get their name from the fact that you have a weird bend on the end of a long carbon molecule. This is susceptible to oxidation. This is true for any Omega 3 molecule regardless of its length Or it's sourcing.
This includes omega-3 "drugs" like Vascepa (pure EPA) and Lovaza (EPA and DHA combination).
Fortunately in testing, they have not found widespread issues with rancidity, although they definitely have found pockets. My normal suggestion to everybody is by a high volume manufacturer that you know is tearing through the product quite rapidly. My top suggestion is Costco. Then make sure you keep your fish oil in the refrigerator, and churn through it on a regular basis.
However I started taking creatine this summer to help with my recovery from running now that I'm older. I will say I feel it's done more for my cognitive function than the omega-3 did.
The Sports Research Triple Strength capsules just like the Nordical Naturals have much more EPA than DHA (but the ratio is different), so I might give these a try too.
Another piece of personal anecdata related to Omega 3, is that I recently started taking most of it with dinner, and my sleep subjectively feels slightly better than when I used to take them earlier in the day.
https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/dr-rhonda-patrick/
Wonder if this is related.
Vitamin D, Omega 3, and possibly Magnesium and Creatine.
So I stopped taking a daily multivitamin and I just take modest doeses of these 4 supplemements every day.
They find that one of the nutrient factors studied is positively correlated with improved vision at p=0.01. https://xkcd.com/882/
Omega-3 and fish oil stories always attract a lot of impossibly positive claims, but real-world studies are rarely as good as the anecdotes.
I would also caution people that fish oil isn't entirely benign to supplement with, despite common wisdom suggesting it's risk-free. Fish oil supplements can induce depressive-like symptoms in some people and high dose fish oil is a known trigger for mania in certain people with mood disorders. You can find countless puzzled posts from people wondering why fish oil is making them feel bad: https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Areddit.com+fish+oil+m...
These outcomes are unlikely, but watch for them. It's really sad when someone is taking high dose fish oil because they're desperate for depression relief and all of the influencers say it's good for depression, then months later they run out of pills for a few days and are surprised that they feel better.
Before I get accused of exaggerating anecdotes, there are also randomized clinical trials with an order of magnitude more patients than this study that show a slight increase in depression, opposite of the expected reduction in mood disorders: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2787320
I was unable to access the OP's source, but I do want to point out there are several ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids with different nutrient characteristics. Thanks be to Chat G for banging this out, but I like many people have had this drilled in.
ALA (α-linolenic acid, 18:3 n-3) is an essential fatty acid. It's nutritional role is primarily as a precursor to the other ω-3 PUFAs, humans can elongate and desaturate ALA into longer-chain ω-3s (EPA, DPA, DHA), but the conversion efficiency is very limited (<5% to EPA, <1% to DHA for most people). ALA cannot be converted from EPA, DHA, or DPA. Sources are primarily plant oils (flaxseed, chia, walnuts, canola, soy). If this is your only source of ω-3 PUFAs, you're unhealthy.
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid, 20:5 n-3) is (conditionally) essential. Its role is anti-inflammatory, a precursor for resolvins, cardiovascular protection, eye and brain signaling, and a precursor to DHA synthesis in limited amounts. Sources are marine foods (fatty fish: salmon, mackerel, sardines, anchovies).
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid, 22:6 n-3) is (conditionally) essential. Its role is as a major structural lipid in the retina, brain, and neural tissues, visual function, cognitive development, and neuronal membranes. Sources are marine foods (same as EPA) plus algae oils.
DPA (docosapentaenoic acid, 22:5 n-3) is an intermediate between EPA and DHA. Don't know. Sources are fish and red meat (esp. grass-fed ruminants).
In practice EPA, DHA, and DPA conversion from ALA is too inefficient, so direct dietary sources (fish, seafood, algal oil) are the meaningful way humans obtain enough EPA/DHA. That's why nutrition guidelines (WHO, FAO, NIH, EFSA) often treat EPA + DHA as conditionally essential, especially for infants (where DHA is critical for retina and brain development) and for populations with low fish intake.
Eat fish. As always, a balanced and diverse diet is a key requirement for health. For those who don't know, sardines are less fishy than tuna (hardly at all IMO), cheap, widely accessible, and pretty sure they have low mercury risk.
IPL and RF treatments eventually helped, though.