Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Oct 21;14(20):4430.
doi: 10.3390/nu14204430.

Do Nutrients and Nutraceuticals Play a Role in Diabetic Retinopathy? A Systematic Review

Agostino Milluzzo  1   2 , Martina Barchitta  2 , Andrea Maugeri  2 , Roberta Magnano San Lio  2 , Giuliana Favara  2 , Maria Grazia Mazzone  3 , Laura Sciacca  1 , Antonella Agodi  2
Affiliations

Do Nutrients and Nutraceuticals Play a Role in Diabetic Retinopathy? A Systematic Review

Agostino Milluzzo et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a multifactorial neuro-microvascular disease, whose prevalence ranges from 25% to 60% of subjects affected by diabetes mellitus, representing the main cause of legal blindness in adults of industrialized countries. The treatment of advanced stage of DR is based on invasive and expensive therapies, while few strategies are available for the early stage or prevention. The mechanisms underlying DR involve a complex interplay between the detrimental effects of hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypoxia, and oxidative stress, providing several pathways potentially targeted by nutrients and nutraceuticals. In this study, we conducted a systematic review of observational and interventional studies, evaluating the effect of nutrients and/or nutraceuticals on the risk of DR and their potential use for the treatment of patients with DR. The analysis of the 41 included studies (27 observational and 14 interventional studies) suggests a promising preventive role of some nutrients, in particular for vitamins B (i.e., B1 and B12), D, and E. However, further investigations are necessary to clarify the potential clinical application of nutraceuticals in the prevention and treatment of DR.

Keywords: antioxidants; blindness; diabetes complications; diabetes mellitus; microvascular complications; nutraceuticals; retinopathy; supplements; visual acuity; vitamins.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA 2009 Flow Diagram of study selection.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee Retinopathy, Neuropathy, and Foot Care: Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes—2022. Diabetes Care. 2022;45:S185–S194. doi: 10.2337/dc22-S012. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Resnikoff S., Pascolini D., Etya’ale D., Kocur I., Pararajasegaram R., Pokharel G.P., Mariotti S.P. Global Data on Visual Impairment in the Year 2002. Bull. World Health Organ. 2004;82:844–851. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Simó-Servat O., Hernández C., Simó R. Diabetic Retinopathy in the Context of Patients with Diabetes. Ophthalmic Res. 2019;62:211–217. doi: 10.1159/000499541. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Resnikoff S., Keys T. Future Trends in Global Blindness. Indian J. Ophthalmol. 2012;60:387–395. doi: 10.4103/0301-4738.100532. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Stephenson J., Fuller J.H. Microvascular and Acute Complications in IDDM Patients: The EURODIAB IDDM Complications Study. Diabetologia. 1994;37:278–285. doi: 10.1007/BF00398055. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

Substances