Abstract
Lutein and zeaxanthin are xanthophyll carotenoids present in highly pigmented vegetables and fruits. Lutein is selectively accumulated in the brain relative to other carotenoids. Recent evidence has linked lutein to cognition in older adults, but little is known about lutein in young children, despite structural brain development. We determined lutein intake using FFQ, one 24h recall and three 24h recalls, plasma lutein concentrations and their association with cognition in 160 children 5·6-5·9 years of age, at low risk for neurodevelopmental delay. Plasma lutein was skewed, with a median of 0·23 (2·5th to 95th percentile range 0·11-0·53) µmol/l. Plasma lutein showed a higher correlation with lutein intake estimated as the average of three 24h recalls (r 0·479; P=0·001), rather than one 24h recall (r 0·242; P=0·003) or FFQ (r 0·316; P=0·001). The median lutein intake was 697 (2·5th to 95th percentile range 178-5287) µg/d based on three 24h recalls. Lutein intake was inversely associated with SFA intake, but dietary fat or SFA intakes were not associated with plasma lutein. No associations were found between plasma lutein or lutein intake and any measure of cognition. While subtle independent effects of lutein on child cognition are possible, separating these effects from covariates making an impact on both child diet and cognition may be difficult.
Highlights
Lutein and zeaxanthin are xanthophyll carotenoids present in highly pigmented vegetables and fruits
We found no evidence of any relationship between fat intake (g fat/d, P = 0·91; percentage dietary energy from fat, P = 0·91) and plasma lutein, plasma lutein was inversely associated with the percentage dietary fat from saturated fat (r –0·205; P = 0·01), and positively associated with the percentage fat from n-6 fatty acids (r 0·176; P = 0·032), but not MUFA (r 0·042; P = 0·609) or n-3 fatty acids (r 0·062; P = 0·454)
With respect to breast-feeding, our analysis found that children breast-fed >3 months had significantly higher test scores on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4 (PPVT) (P = 0·037) and the simultaneous processing scale (P = 0·034) than children breast-fed
Summary
Lutein and zeaxanthin are xanthophyll carotenoids present in highly pigmented vegetables and fruits. We determined lutein intake using FFQ, one 24 h recall and three 24 h recalls, plasma lutein concentrations and their association with cognition in 160 children 5·6–5·9 years of age, at low risk for neurodevelopmental delay. While differences in absorption or bioavailability have been suggested, the lipophilic water-insoluble nature of xanthophylls suggests that fat intake may influence lutein absorption and status In this regard, recent experimental studies have suggested that diets rich in SFA result in higher bioavailability of lutein than diets rich in MUFA and PUFA[27]. Information on whether dietary fat is associated with lutein status in humans following their usual diets is limited, and nothing is known for children.
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