This will be carried out through a 16-week double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of parallel study design. Thirty-eight men and women (aged between 60 and 85 years old inclusive) will recruited and assigned to an intervention or placebo group. The intervention group will consume 46 g/day of a freeze-dried table grape and the control group will consume the same amount of a placebo, table grape placebo powder. Measurements of 1) macular pigment optical density (MPOD), a clinical marker for eye health, 2) carotenoids status, 3) markers of oxidative stress, 4) markers of endothelial function, 5) body size and blood pressure, and 6) dietary assessment will be assessed over the 16-week study. This study will consist of 1 screening visit and 5 study visits in 4-week intervals to the Food Science and Technology Department, Occupational Health Clinic and National University Heart Centre.
Aging epidemics in Singapore are rapidly increasing and Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) prevalence is significantly associated with older age. This study aims to understand the effect of consuming freeze-dried table grape powder on AMD in an older population.