Muriel Saunders didn’t know a problem was developing in her eyes until she went in for a checkup with her doctor.

“I really didn’t realize I was developing cataracts,” Saunders, 73, said. “I have always worn glasses, even when I was a kid. I was diagnosed when I went to Dr. (Michael L.) Soper and was given a test in his office.”

Saunders, who teaches at Connors State College, said this occurred one year ago. She was not afraid of having surgery to correct the condition.

“I knew people who had the surgery, so I knew it was not a problem,” she said. “He implanted a lens in my left eye, and the vision there is better now that it was years ago.”

According to a report in the January issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, women who have higher dietary intake of lutein and zeaxanthin — compounds found in yellow or dark, leafy vegetables — as well as more vitamin E from food and supplements appear to have a lower risk for developing cataracts.

Saunders said she will share this dietary information with her family, because genetics have a role in who is more likely to develop cataracts.

“I have two daughters and two granddaughters, and I plan to tell them about this,” she said.

Saunders added that she already may have benefited from a healthy diet, even before she heard about the latest research.

“I have taken vitamins and eat vegetables; maybe that’s why I didn’t get the cataracts until I was 72,” she said.

Specific foods high in carotenoids include broccoli and spinach. Other foods that contain nutrients tested in the research include tomato-based products, carrots, green leafy vegetables, peaches and corn.

The article in the Archives of Ophthalmology described the study as based on the dietary habits of 39,876 female health professionals. Of those, 35,551 women provided detailed information on antioxidant nutrient intake from food and supplements. Researchers followed up on their research subjects 10 years later.

Authors of the study concluded that “higher dietary intakes of lutein/zeaxanthin and vitamin E from food and supplements were associated with significantly decreased risks of cataract.”

Soper said that cataracts are a typical age-related condition. They have become more common as life spans have increased.

“If we live long enough, we’ll get cataracts in some form,” he said. “After age 60, everyone will have a cataract. The question is whether or not it is visually significant.”

Soper was cautiously optimistic about this recent research.