A new report states that regularly eating fast food can lead to vision loss. Unlike routine aches and pains in the body, your eyes rarely alert you to health issues, making it difficult to anticipate vision loss before it's too late. According to the report published in the British Journal of General Practice, one way that could endanger your eye health is a diet based on fast food.
The report discusses a teenager who went blind after years of consuming fast food, prompting eye doctors in Bristol to warn about the risks associated with fast food after caring for the young man, whose condition gradually deteriorated to irreversible blindness. Researchers at the Bristol Eye Hospital, Bristol, UK reported on a 14-year-old patient who first visited his family doctor complaining of fatigue. Despite being described as "picky" and having a normal Body Mass Index (BMI), the boy did not take any harmful medications.
The teenager admitted that since leaving elementary school, he had lived on a diet of fried potatoes, Pringles, white bread, and processed meats. Although his BMI was normal and he was not on any medication, tests showed that his body suffered from vitamin deficiencies, with low levels of vitamin B12 and significant cellular anemia, a condition that leads to an increased number of red blood cells above normal levels.
The medical report noted that as a result, he received a vitamin B12 injection, took dietary supplements, and was given nutritional advice, but he did not adhere to the recommended treatment. A year later, the young man returned to the hospital complaining of hearing loss and impaired vision, but doctors could not determine the cause. The report stated that by the age of seventeen, the patient’s vision had gradually worsened to the point of blindness, according to the British newspaper Express.
The boy admitted that he had avoided healthy textured foods, consuming the same fast foods for over a decade. Through an investigation into the boy's nutrition, doctors found deficiencies in vitamin B12 and vitamin D, decreased bone mineral density, low levels of copper and selenium, and elevated zinc levels. By the time his condition was diagnosed, the patient had permanent vision impairment.
The report warned that nutritional-related visual damage should always be considered by doctors when encountering any patient with unexplained visual symptoms. The report noted, "The risks of cardiovascular disease, obesity, and cancer associated with fast food consumption are well known, but malnutrition can cause lasting damage to the nervous system, especially vision."
