BehindTheMedspeak: Being a pilot triples your risk of cataract

Researchers from the University of Iceland report in the current issue of the journal Archives of Ophthalmology that commercial airline pilots are three times more likely to develop cataracts — clouding of the lens of the eye — than individuals in other professions.

According to a BBC report on the study, cosmic rays — highly energetic particles that bombard Earth from outer space — have already been linked to cataracts among astronauts.

The Icelandic scientists believe that cosmic rays may be the cause of the increased eye damage in pilots as well.

However, Dr. Michael Clark of the U.K. Health Protection Agency told the BBC that it was unlikely that cosmic radiation was the cause of the pilots' increased incidence of cataract formation.

Here's a link to the abstract of the article in the Archives of Ophthalmology.

Here's a link to the BBC story.

Here's a link to the WebMD story on the study.