Dietary Anthocyanins: Ocular Protective Effects and Underlying Mechanisms – A Comprehensive Review

Ophthalmic diseases afflict more than 2.2 billion people worldwide and constitute a critical public health issue. Conventional therapies have prominent limitations, creating an urgent demand for safe nutritional, preventive, and auxiliary interventions. As water-soluble flavonoids with powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-angiogenic properties, anthocyanins exhibit verified retinal protective effects and are core components of eye health supplements. However, few systematic summaries have fully combined the preclinical and clinical research data on the application of anthocyanins in eye disorders. This review outlines the molecular mechanisms and clinical effectiveness of anthocyanins in five common eye illnesses as well as existing research shortcomings and future research directions, demonstrating that anthocyanins activate antioxidant signaling cascades, regulate nuclear factor-κB and vascular endothelial growth factor pathways, and boost rhodopsin production to shield retinal cells from oxidative stress and photodamage. The long-term consumption of anthocyanin-rich foods improves visual performance. Anthocyanins are multitarget natural bioactive substances with broad prospects for developing eye-protective functional food products. This review addresses the existing research deficiencies and provides references for subsequent exploration.