Lutein is a carotenoid found in green vegetables, egg yolks, and some fruits. It is an antioxidant that protects eye health by filtering out harmful ultraviolet light rays and preventing oxidative damage. Lutein vitamins can be taken as supplements to prevent age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, and other diseases. Lutein is fat-soluble and caution should be exercised when supplementing.
Lutein is a carotenoid found in several natural sources, including green vegetables like spinach or kale, egg yolks, and some fruits. This carotenoid is a strong antioxidant, which generally refers to a molecule that helps protect an organism from free radical damage. Lutein in particular has an established effect in protecting eye health. Lutein vitamins refer to dietary supplements that contain high levels of lutein.
The important role of lutein in eye health can be demonstrated by the fact that people are born with lutein in their eye tissues. The body does not produce lutein, so lutein in the eye cannot be replaced naturally and must be obtained from the diet. Ingested lutein circulates throughout the body and a large proportion of this compound is stored in the ocular tissues. Many scientific studies support the idea that ingesting high levels of the lutein vitamins helps protect the eye from diseases, more specifically age-related macular degeneration and cataracts.
Lutein protects eye tissue by acting as a filter for ultraviolet light rays that are harmful to certain areas of the eye, such as the macula. This compound appears to filter out blue light from the visible spectrum. In addition to absorbing light, lutein also has antioxidant functions and can protect eye tissue from oxidative damage.
Although lutein accumulates primarily in the eye tissues, the lutein vitamins may also have other beneficial effects throughout the body. Like many antioxidants, lutein may help prevent certain types of cancer by preventing free radical damage to tissues. Lutein vitamins may also help prevent cardiovascular disease.
It is believed that most Americans do not get enough lutein from the diet, and for this reason, many health professionals recommend supplementation with lutein vitamins. Lutein vitamins can be sold as lutein on its own, although it is often packaged in a supplement with other antioxidants. Zeaxanthin is a carotenoid that is very similar to lutein functionally, and these two antioxidants are often combined and sold as eye health supplements. Alternatively, these carotenoids can be combined with vitamins A. Most of the lutein in supplements is derived from calendula flowers, a rich source of lutein.
Little has been reported about the negative side effects of lutein vitamins. This carotenoid is fat soluble, which means that excess levels are stored in fat and not excreted in the urine like water-soluble vitamins. Caution should always be exercised when supplementing with a fat-soluble substance. One advantage of lutein is that it is different from many other carotenoids in that it is not converted to active forms of vitamin A in the body, making it less toxic than these substances at high levels. Most health professionals recommend supplementing with lutein at levels close to what you would get from a healthy diet, which is about 3 mg per day.
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