Thanks for posting this. It’s very important to me. My father had heart disease and was blind from AMD, when he died from Alzheimer’s in his mid 90s. My mother also died of “dementia” at 89. I am presently taking a statin for elevated cholesterol but it is now well under control. I had considered stopping it, though this article would indicate I should keep on taking it (as my doctor recommends).
Thanks for all your efforts in posting medical news. It’s always interesting and a is great resource for us all.
I eat them as part of dessert after a meal that had fat.
Dried goji berries may provide protection against age-related vision loss (1 oz/day provides 28.8 mg Zeaxanthin - Lutein 6mg/Zeaxanthin 4mg supplement did nothing)
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4029249/posts
Another thing my wife and I constantly get now is ergothioneine from foods and supplements. It is a backup antioxidant to all sorts of antioxidants our body needs. Unlike all other antioxidants, it lasts over three weeks, once in place. Nearly all of our body's cells have an ion pathway to allow in only this substance. Internally-made antioxidants SOD or glutathione last a couple hours, at most.
Ergothioneine appears to also help the retina and other parts of the eye.
Screening and evaluation of antioxidants for retinal pigment epithelial cell protection: L-ergothioneine as a novel therapeutic candidate through NRF2 activation
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0014483524000836
“The continual exposure of retinal tissues to oxidative stress leads to discernible anatomical and physiological alterations. Specifically, the onslaught of oxidative damage escalates the irreversible death of retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) cells, pinpointed as the fundamental pathological event in dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). There is a conspicuous lack of effective therapeutic strategies to counteract this degenerative process. This study screened a library of antioxidants for their ability to protect RPE cells against oxidative stress and identified L-ergothioneine (EGT) as a potent cytoprotective agent. L-ergothioneine provided efficient protection against oxidative stress-damaged RPE and maintained cell redox homeostasis and normal physiological functions. It maintained the normal structure of the retina in mice under oxidative stress conditions. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that EGT counteracted major gene expression changes induced by oxidative stress. It upregulated antioxidant gene expression and inhibited NRF2 translocation… In conclusion, we identified EGT as a safe and effective small-molecule compound that is expected to be a novel antioxidative agent for treating AMD.”
This is in oyster and shiitake mushrooms, and in small quantities in white and brown button mushroom. If you don't eat mushrooms often, Double Wood has L-Ergothioneine at $10 for a 60 count of 30 mg capsules (Amazon). This is an incredible deal, as just a couple years ago this was not available in supplement form in any reasonable amount. I recall a few years back seeing it at $125 for half this amount in 25 mg capsules from a research company.