Smoking 'could cause cataracts in older people'

New research has indicated older people who smoke are increasing their chances of developing cataracts in the future.

An Asian study reported in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science found smoking may increase the risk of age-related cataract, which is known to be the leading cause of blindness and vision loss in the world.

Author of the research Dr Juan Ye of the Institute of Ophthalmology, Zhejiang University in China stated many people remain blind from cataracts because of inadequate surgical services and high surgery expenses.

"Our analysis shows that association between smoking and the risk of age-related cataract differ by subtypes, suggesting that pathophysiologic processes may differ in the different cataract types," he said.

Analysis was performed using 12 cohorts and eight case-control studies from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and North America.

According to a recent University of Michigan Health System report, smoking also increases the likelihood of a person developing pancreatic cancer.

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