Plant Sterols and MPOD

MAASTRICHT, Netherlands—An observed reduction in serum carotenoid concentrations during 18 months of consumption did not affect macular pigment optical density (MPOD), according to a study published in the British Journal of Clinical Nutrition (DOI:10.1017/S0007114508111448). Functional foods enriched with plant sterol or stanol esters may lower serum concentrations of fat-soluble carotenoids. The double blind, placebo-controlled human intervention trial lasted 18 months while evaluating the possible effects of plant stanol and sterol esters on serum lutein/zeaxanthin concentration in relation to the MPOD. Forty-seven subjects were randomly assigned to one of the three treatment groups: margarine without added plant sterols or stanols, plant sterol-enriched margarine, or plant stanol-enriched margarine. Changes in lipid-adjusted serum lutein/zeaxanthine concentrations between baseline and study end differed significantly between the three groups (P=0.001). No differences were found in the MPOD between the three treatment groups, despite the differences in both absolute and cholesterol-standardized serum lutein/zeaxanthine concentrations.