Abstract
To confirm the usefulness of noninvasive measurements of skin carotenoids to indicate vegetable intake and to elucidate relationships between skin carotenoid levels and biomarkers of circulatory diseases and metabolic syndrome, we conducted a cross-sectional study on a resident-based health checkup (n = 811; 58% women; 49.5 ± 15.1 years). Skin and serum carotenoid levels were measured via reflectance spectroscopy and high-performance liquid chromatography, respectively. Vegetable intake was estimated using a dietary questionnaire. Levels of 9 biomarkers (body mass index [BMI], brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity [baPWV], systolic and diastolic blood pressure [SBP and DBP], homeostasis model assessment as an index of insulin resistance [HOMA-IR], blood insulin, fasting blood glucose [FBG], triglycerides [TGs], and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C]) were determined. Skin carotenoid levels were significantly positively correlated with serum total carotenoids and vegetable intake (r = 0.678 and 0.210, respectively). In women, higher skin carotenoid levels were significantly associated with lower BMI, SBP, DBP, HOMA-IR, blood insulin, and TGs levels and higher HDL-C levels. In men, it was also significantly correlated with BMI and blood insulin levels. In conclusion, dermal carotenoid level may indicate vegetable intake, and the higher level of dermal carotenoids are associated with a lower risk of circulatory diseases and metabolic syndrome.
Highlights
Do you know how many vegetables you ate yesterday or how many vegetables you consumed on average over the past month? Most consumers recognize the importance of consuming vegetables to maintain their health and prevent chronic diseases
Of the nine biomarkers of circulatory diseases and metabolic syndrome, HOMA-IR and blood insulin levels did not differ by sex, but averages of the other seven biomarkers differed between sexes; HDL-cholesterol was significantly lower, and the other 6 biomarkers were higher in men
This study is the first to demonstrate that skin carotenoid levels reflect vegetable intake and that the levels were significantly associated with multiple predictive biomarkers of circulatory diseases and metabolic syndrome in relatively healthy adults
Summary
Do you know how many vegetables you ate yesterday or how many vegetables you consumed on average over the past month? Most consumers recognize the importance of consuming vegetables to maintain their health and prevent chronic diseases. Do you know how many vegetables you ate yesterday or how many vegetables you consumed on average over the past month? The World Health Organization recommends aggressive vegetable and fruit intake by consuming more than 400 g of fruits and vegetables daily to improve overall health and reduce the risk of certain noncommunicable diseases, including cardiovascular diseases and some cancers [5]. Many countries recommend this and set goals for fruit and vegetable consumption [6,7,8,9]. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan recommends that people consume 350 g of vegetables daily [10], but the average vegetable intake among Japanese people is only around 280–290 g and has not changed over the past two decades [11]. Presenting vegetable and fruit intake in a simple quantitative manner and communicating the relationship between vegetable and fruit intake and health will make these recommendations more meaningful to consumers
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