A Nutritional Paradigm to Impede Cataract Initiation: A Narrative Review of Emerging Perspective on Nutraceuticals

ABSTRACT This review explores the emerging evidence to accommodate the developing requirement of non‐intrusive quality health‐life alternatives to combat cataractogenesis while advocating nutraceuticals to serve as effective, accessible, and preemptive regimen. Inequalities in financial resources and a lack of dietary knowledge influence the diversity of global cataract frequencies, emphasizing the urgency of prophylactic strategies. With regard to precise and accurate monitoring, this abstract synthesized 67 articles, adhering to the PRISMA guidelines. Promising evidence indicates a nutritious meal containing fruits, vegetables, and vitamins C (ascorbic acid) and E, calcium, folic acid, omega‐3 fatty acids, and carotenoids (lutein/zeaxanthin) is beneficial to halt cataract initiation and preserve eye health on a global scale. Vitamin E could safeguard light‐sensitive ocular structures regarding photoperoxidative degradation driven by light‐catalyzed oxygen‐free radicals. It's imperative to refrain from a diet filled with fat, salt, and glucose. Arguably, research has settled on the possible connection between the consumption of carbohydrates, sugar, dairy‐related foods, and cataracts. Frequencing around 37%, cataract may be associated with severe diarrhea or cholera, in accordance with epidemiological studies investigated in India. A prospective remedial approach to decisively promoting nutritious meals containing vitamin C and E, carotenoids (lutein, meso‐zeaxanthin, and zeaxanthin), and omega‐3 fatty acids that are accessible, affordable, and enticing to everyone is highly desirable in community outreach and employing expertise from interdisciplinary fields. There is abundant scope with promising evidence on caffeine's anti‐apoptotic characteristics, along with modulation of glycation pathways, considering the dietary inflammation index (DII), ought to concentrate on a new pathway against cataractogenesis.