Eyespy: November 2012

Sight costing coffee—People who drink more than three cups of coffee a day are at risk of going blind, says research published in Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science (2012; doi:10.1167/iovs.12-10085). The meta analysis looked at eye examination results and coffee drinking habits from over 120 000 men and women. Participants, all of whom were 40 years and older, were followed up for an average of 28 years. The results show those drinking more than 500 mg of caffeine a day (equivalent to three cups of coffee) have a relative risk of 1.66 (95% CI 1.09 to 2.45) of developing glaucoma. No associations were found for decaffeinated coffee, caffeinated tea, or hot chocolate.

Dummy damage—Using a pacifier (dummy) might cause emotional problems in boys, says a retrospective study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, US (Basic Appl Soc Psych 2012; doi:10.1080/01973533.2012.712019). Young children mimic facial expressions of adults and other children to learn