What foods have provitamin A carotenoids?
The top food sources of vitamin A in the U.S. diet include dairy products, liver, fish, and fortified cereals; the top sources of provitamin A include carrots, broccoli, cantaloupe, and squash [4,5].
What role do carotenoids play in human health?
Dietary carotenoids are thought to provide health benefits in decreasing the risk of disease, particularly certain cancers and eye disease. Furthermore, lutein and zeaxanthin may be protective in eye disease because they absorb damaging blue light that enters the eye.
What are the functions of carotenoids?
Carotenoids have been shown to have two major functions in photosynthesis. They act as photoprotective agents, preventing the harmful photodynamic reaction, and as accessory light-harvesting pigments, extending the spectral range over which light drives photosynthesis.
What are carotenoids and what foods are they found in?
What are carotenoids? Carotenoids are pigments in plants, algae, and photosynthetic bacteria. These pigments produce the bright yellow, red, and orange colors in plants, vegetables, and fruits….Foods rich in carotenoids include:
- yams.
- kale.
- spinach.
- watermelon.
- cantaloupe.
- bell peppers.
- tomatoes.
- carrots.
What foods are high in Vit A?
The best sources of vitamin A are:
- Cod liver oil.
- Eggs.
- Fortified breakfast cereals.
- Fortified skim milk.
- Orange and yellow vegetables and fruits, such as carrots and sweet potatoes.
- Dark green, leafy vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, and most dark green, leafy vegetables.
What foods are high in carotene?
Dietary Sources The richest sources of beta-carotene are yellow, orange, and green leafy fruits and vegetables (such as carrots, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cantaloupe, and winter squash). In general, the more intense the color of the fruit or vegetable, the more beta-carotene it has.
What color do carotenoids reflect?
Plants of different colors contain other pigments, such as anthocyanins, which are responsible for reds and purples; anthoxanthins, which reflect yellow; and carotenoids, which reflect yellow, orange, or red.
What is the main function of carotenoids in photosynthesis?
Carotenoids are ubiquitous and essential pigments in photosynthesis. They absorb in the blue-green region of the solar spectrum and transfer the absorbed energy to (bacterio-)chlorophylls, and so expand the wavelength range of light that is able to drive photosynthesis.
What is the most well known carotenoids?
The most prevalent carotenoids in the human diet are α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin (8). Most carotenoids in foods are found in the all-trans form (see Figure 1 and Figure 2 above), although cooking may result in the formation of other isomers.
How are provitamin A carotenoids converted to vitamin A?
Provitamin A carotenoids, α-carotene, β-carotene, and β-cryptoxanthin, can be converted by the body to retinol (vitamin A). In contrast, no vitamin A activity can be derived from lutein, zeaxanthin, and lycopene.
Which is the only essential function of carotenoids?
Currently, the only essential function of carotenoids recognized in humans is that of the provitamin A carotenoids, α-carotene, β-carotene, and β-cryptoxanthin, to serve as a source of vitamin A (8).
Can a low carotenoid diet prevent vitamin A deficiency?
Although consumption of provitamin A carotenoids (α-carotene, β-carotene, and β-cryptoxanthin) can prevent vitamin A deficiency (see the article on Vitamin A), no overt deficiency symptoms have been identified in people consuming low-carotenoid diets if they consume adequate vitamin A (8).
Why are carotenoids important in the agro-food industry?
In this review, the importance of carotenoids (including apocarotenoids) and key derivatives (retinoids with VA activity) in agro-food with relevance to health is summarized. Furthermore, the European Network to Advance Carotenoid Research and Applications in Agro-Food and Health (EUROCAROTEN) is introduced.