What Is Caffe and How Does 7-MX Affect Myopia?

A caffeine metabolite called 7-MX can inhibit axial elongation in the human eye, which may slow the worsening of myopia. Research published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology analyzed more than two decades of medical records from 711 Danish children, offering a potential new drug target for myopia control. Denmark has approved 7-MX for childhood myopia since 2009.

Among the 711 children treated at a Danish eye clinic between June 2000 and January 2021, 624 took an average of 470 mg of 7-MX daily, with doses reaching 1200 mg, while 87 did not. Children taking 400 mg per day showed a 0.04 mm reduction in axial growth rate in the first year compared with the control group. Myopia already affects about 30% of the world's population.

Electronic devices are everywhere, and our eyes are under constant high strain, making vision problems increasingly common. Currently, about 30% of the world's population suffers from myopia, and this proportion is expected to climb to 50% by 2050, with high myopia accounting for a significant share. A recent study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology found that the caffeine metabolite 7-MX can inhibit axial elongation in the human eye, potentially slowing myopia progression. Based on more than two decades of medical records from 711 Danish children, the study offers a new potential drug target for myopia control. This article will take a detailed look at the study's findings, data and limitations, and explore the future prospects for 7-MX.

Today, electronic devices have permeated every aspect of life. For busy office workers, juggling phones and computers is almost the norm. Eyes tire easily under such intense strain, and over time, once-prized vision gradually declines, making the eyes the partner that needs our care the most.

According to statistics, myopia currently affects about 30% of the global population, and by 2050 that proportion is projected to rise to 50%, with roughly 10% of those cases developing into high myopia of over 500 degrees.

In recent years, myopia research has focused on controlling axial elongation and improving iris condition. Earlier animal experiments showed that oral 7-MX could slow axial elongation, but clinical validation had been lacking. Recently, a study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology indicated that the caffeine metabolite 7-MX can inhibit axial elongation in humans, thereby helping to slow the worsening of myopia.

Neuroscience News reported that Denmark has approved 7-MX for treating childhood myopia since 2009, but until now long-term research had not provided sufficient evidence. To address this, researchers retrieved medical records from an eye clinic in Denmark for 711 children (356 girls and 355 boys) who received myopia treatment between June 2000 and January 2021.

Among these children, 624 took an average of 470 mg of 7-MX tablets per day (with the highest dose reaching 1200 mg), while the remaining 87 did not take it.

The results showed that, compared with the placebo group, children taking 400 mg per day had a 0.04 mm reduction in axial growth rate during the first year; those taking 1000 mg per day had about a 0.07 mm reduction in first-year axial growth rate; and cumulative growth over six years was reduced by 0.18 mm.

According to the report, none of the children taking 7-MX during follow-up experienced any side effects.

In addition, because 7-MX is rapidly cleared from the blood, currently available immediate-release tablets cannot maintain a stable drug concentration in the blood even when taken three times a day.

The researchers noted that these findings are consistent with the results of experimental studies. But they also acknowledged that the study is observational and has certain limitations, and that potential influences such as genetics, time spent outdoors and ethnicity cannot be ruled out.

If future randomized controlled trials can confirm causality and efficacy, 7-MX could become an extremely valuable drug.

Perhaps one day technology will give humans "clairvoyance." But until then, we can only be more careful and at least preserve the vision we have. We might as well start by drinking coffee as usual and spending less time on our phones.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.