Fish Oils Can Prevent Blindness

Forget all that talk of carrots, the best thing to eat for vision might well be salmon.

The responsible party is, of course, omega-3 fatty acids, which are plentiful in fish — especially oily fish like salmon — seem to be made of magic, and provide benefits for a variety of health issues from heart health to depression, reduced instances of cancer, and even ADHD, in some cases.

The newest item on fish's impressive résumé of health benefits is the prevention of age-related vision loss.

According to the Toronto Sun, researchers at the University of Alberta have been studying patients with macular degeneration, the main cause of blindness in people over 50, and found those with the highest levels of the DHA omega-3 fatty acid also have the lowest severity of macular degeneration, and the slowest progression.

According to researchers, a healthy diet should contain a one-to-one ratio of omega-3 to omega-6, but most North Americans don't get that, because our diet tends to be high in food that contains by products of soy and corn, which are very high in omega-6.

To even out the scales, omega-3 fatty acids can also be acquired from fish oil capsules and vegetarian supplements derived from algae. But that's not particularly tasty, so take a look at some of our best salmon recipes, and see if you can't come up with a more delicious solution.