Macular Pigment Density

The macula or macula lutea ("yellow spot" in Latin) is an oval yellow area near the center of the retina of the human eye.

At the center of the macula is the fovea: with the largest concentration of cone cells (responsible for detailed vision and colour vision) in the eye and is responsible for central vision. Within the macula is the fovea - a small depression in the macula - which contains a high density of cones (photoreceptors with high acuity).

The macula has an important and naturally occurring protective substance known as the macular pigment (MP). The MP is made up of several carotenoids (phytochemicals - found in plants) commonly found in certain fruits and vegetables that provide the red, orange and yellow colors of these foods. The MP is made of three known compounds:

Lutein and zeaxanthin are obtained through food and are found primarly in broccoli, corn, squash and dark green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale. Meso-Zeaxanthin is obtained by an enzyme conversion of lutein to meso zeaxanthin in the macula. It is not found in a typical diet.

In a 1994 Journal of American Medical Association report, Dr. Johanna M. Seddon and her associates at Harvard University found that 6 mg per day of lutein lead to a 43 percent lower risk for Macular Degeneration.

"When we compared the amount of macular pigment, which is comprised of lutein and zeaxanthin, present in the eyes of people with age-related macular degeneration to people without the disease, those with the lowest levels of carotenoid accumulation in the outer retina were significantly more likely to suffer from age-related macular degeneration than those with higher pigment levels, ” said Dr. Landrum. “The difference in risk between those having the highest and lowest levels was 75 percent."

Dr. Landrum, Florida International University

* Vrabec T, Tantri A et al. Autosomal dominant Stargardt-like macular dystrophy: identification of a new family with a mutation in the ELOVL4 gene. Am J Ophthalmol. 2003;136(3):542-5