BACKGROUND: Some of the main nutritional reasons for recommending a Mediterranean diet is to prevent metabolic diseases arising through free radical formation. A key constituent compound is beta-carotene which, amongst the carotenoids, displays the greatest provitamin A activity as well as possessing significant antioxidant properties. OBJECTIVES: Principally, to determine the relationship between serum beta-carotene levels and the effect of Mediterranean diet guidelines in a selected group of women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The subject group consisted of 26 women aged 19-22 years. A nutritional assessment was performed using 3 day repeats of 24-hour recall interviews. A 9-point aMED (alternate Mediterranean Diet) score was used to study dietary habits. Serum beta-carotene was measured by liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection (HPLC-PDA). RESULTS: Beta-carotene dietary intake was highly variable, ranging from 734 to 14476 microg/day (median 3022 microg/day). Serum beta-carotene concentration ranged between 0.071-1.905 micromol/L (median 0.519 micromol/L) and was significantly associated with the Mediterranean Diet model (Spearman r = 0.633, p < 0.001). Out of the dietary sources of beta-carotene, consuming carrots had the most significant impact on its serum concentration. Other dietary factors positively affecting serum beta-carotene were: consumption of nuts and seeds, pulses, a favourable ratio of mono-unsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids and eating fruit and wholegrain cereal products. CONCLUSIONS: Adopting a Mediterranean-based diet had a positive effect on increasing serum beta-carotene levels.
BACKGROUND: Some of the main nutritional reasons for recommending a Mediterranean diet is to prevent metabolic diseases arising through free radical formation. A key constituent compound is beta-carotene which, amongst the carotenoids, displays the greatest provitamin A activity as well as possessing significant antioxidant properties. OBJECTIVES: Principally, to determine the relationship between serum beta-carotene levels and the effect of Mediterranean diet guidelines in a selected group of women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The subject group consisted of 26 women aged 19-22 years. A nutritional assessment was performed using 3 day repeats of 24-hour recall interviews. A 9-point aMED (alternate Mediterranean Diet) score was used to study dietary habits. Serum beta-carotene was measured by liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection (HPLC-PDA). RESULTS:Beta-carotene dietary intake was highly variable, ranging from 734 to 14476 microg/day (median 3022 microg/day). Serum beta-carotene concentration ranged between 0.071-1.905 micromol/L (median 0.519 micromol/L) and was significantly associated with the Mediterranean Diet model (Spearman r = 0.633, p < 0.001). Out of the dietary sources of beta-carotene, consuming carrots had the most significant impact on its serum concentration. Other dietary factors positively affecting serum beta-carotene were: consumption of nuts and seeds, pulses, a favourable ratio of mono-unsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids and eating fruit and wholegrain cereal products. CONCLUSIONS: Adopting a Mediterranean-based diet had a positive effect on increasing serum beta-carotene levels.
Authors: Małgorzata Elżbieta Zujko; Anna Maria Witkowska; Anna Waśkiewicz; Iwona Mirończuk-Chodakowska Journal: Oxid Med Cell Longev Date: 2015-07-08 Impact factor: 6.543