Effect of n-3 fatty acid enriched eggs and organic eggs on serum lutein in free-living lacto-ovo vegetarians

Background/Objective: Lutein is a xanthophyll found in the chloroplasts of dark green leafy vegetables, chromoplasts of fruits, and egg yolk. Dietary, serum and macular lutein are inversely related to the risk of age-related macular degeneration. Although the lutein from egg is known to be more bioavailable than that from spinach, not much is known about lutein bioavailability from n-3 fatty acid enriched eggs and organic eggs, both of which are increasingly available to consumers. Subjects/Methods: We determined the effects of feeding n-3 fatty acid-enriched eggs and organic eggs on serum lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-carotene in 20 healthy lacto-ovo-vegetarian (LOV) adults using a single-blind, randomized, crossover study design with a 4-week washout between treatments: six organic eggs or six n-3 fatty acid enriched eggs per week or no egg control for 8weeks each. Results: Serum lutein was significantly higher in both egg treatments (P<0.009) compared with the control, but was not different between the two egg treatments. Serum beta-carotene was also higher in the egg groups compared with control but only approached significance (P = 0.066). Serum zeaxanthin increased in both egg treatments compared with control but did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.139). Conclusion: n-3 fatty acid enriched eggs and organic eggs may both significantly increase serum lutein in healthy LOV consuming a predominately plant-based diet. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2010) 64, 1332-1337; doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2010.140; published online 28 July 2010