A major twenty-year study conducted in Boston has concluded that there is a link between Type 2 diabetes and an increased risk for primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), which is the most commonly found form of glaucoma. The research was carried out at Harvard Medical School, the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Brigham and Women's Hospital. A pretty amazing number of people were involved in the study: 76,000 women, enrolled between 1980 and 2000. The results have been published in the journal Ophthalmology.
The bottom line? Yes, Type 2 diabetes is associated with poor lifestyle choices and obesity. However, this study indicates that other, unrelated, factors are to blame for the diabetes-glaucoma link. So if someone develops Type 2 diabetes, for whatever reason, there are all kinds of other factors involved in determining risk factors for diabetes-related health complications, like glaucoma.
