People with diabetes are at double the risk of developing cataract as the general population and the relative risk is highest in those aged between 45 and 54, a study says. Cataract is one of the main causes of global sight loss.

"The report has shown that having diabetes doubles your risk of being diagnosed with a cataract, and that this risk is six times higher if a diabetic patient has significant diabetic retinal disease, called diabetic maculopathy," said study co-author Rupert Bourne, Professor of Ophthalmology at Anglia Ruskin University in England.