Carotenoid Mix Increases MPOD

WATERFORD, IrelandTwo weeks of supplementing with the carotenoids meso-zeaxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin boosted eye health by increasing macular pigment optical density (MPOD) in a recent study from Waterford Institute of Technology in Ireland (Curr Eye Res. 2010 Apr;35(4):335-51). Also, this study found the carotenoid formulation rebuilt central MPOD in subjects who have atypical profiles at baseline.

In the study, 10 subjects were recruited (five normal and five with early age-related macular degeneration [AMD]). Subjects were instructed to consume a formulation containing 7.3 mg of meso-zeaxanthin, 3.7 mg of lutein and 0.8 mg of zeaxanthin everyday during an eight-week period. The spatial profile of MPOD was measured using customized heterochromatic flicker photometry, and a blood sample was collected at each study visit in order to analyze serum concentrations of each carotenoid

Researchers reported significant increases in MPOD after just two weeks of supplementation (p < 0.05). Four subjects (one normal and three AMD) who had an atypical MPOD spatial profile (i.e., central dip) at baseline had the more typical MPOD spatial profile (i.e., highest MPOD at the center) after eight weeks of supplementation. They also found a significant increase in serum concentrations of meso-zeaxanthin and lutein after two weeks of supplementation (p < 0.05), confirming absorption of the formula  

Macular pigment is composed of the three carotenoids in the study as is used by the eye as a blue-light filter and antioxidant, which protects the retina.

Lutein and zeaxanthin are the two carotenoids that occur at high levels in the retina of the eyes. Their main functions are to absorb the harmful blue-violet wavelengths of light energy that come into the eye, and to acts as antioxidants. Unlike lutein and zeaxanthin, meso-zeaxanthin is not found in the diet, but is converted in the retina from ingested lutein.