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Chewing tobacco may lead to partial blindness, says study
Posted on: 09/Mar/2016 11:36:29 AM
A study conducted by a reputed eye hospital in Chennai has said that regularly chewing tobacco can lead to partial blindness. The study was conducted by doctors and consultants at Sankara Nethralaya.
Speaking about this a senior consultant from the hospital said, While there have been studies in the West that have found smoking to be a risk factor for early and late Age Related Maculopathy (ARM), an eye-condition that affects the central-vision of the eye in the Western population, this is the first study in India that shows that even chewing tobacco carries risks that can affect eyesight.
In ARM, the macula which is near the centre of the retina, is affected. The study titled Rural urban Age related Macular Degeneration was conducted over three years. The study was published in the UK journal Eye.
According to the study, ARM can be caused by two independent modifiable risk factors which are hypertension and chewing tobacco in any form. Results showed that this was more prevalent in the rural parts of the country. The study also showed that early ARM was found more in people who were in the higher socio economic groups in urban areas.
A total sample size of 6617 people were studied. Out of this, 3904 i.e. 60 percent was from rural areas and 2713 i.e. 40 percent were from urban areas. The 60 percent were from 16 villages in Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts. Results showed that the rural population chewed more tobacco than its urban counterpart - about 27.9 percent as against 13.7 percent.
Says the consultant, It is estimated that nearly 275 million people in India are users of tobacco. It is known that along with genetics and environmental reasons, smoking is one of the risk factors of Age-related Macular Degeneration among the Western population. However, this is the first Indian study to show smokeless tobacco will cause AMD in Indian Population. Ageing population is at a risk of developing ARM, hence every effort must be taken for prevention and early diagnosis so as to minimise visual morbidity. Good control of blood pressure and stopping tobacco intake, and creating awareness on tobacco use are the only prevention methods.
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