Hostname: page-component-cb9f654ff-qc88w Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-08-31T22:18:18.582Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A European carotenoid database to assess carotenoid intakes and its use in a five-country comparative study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

M. E. O'Neill ,
Y. Carroll ,
B. Corridan ,
B. Olmedilla ,
F. Granado ,
I. Blanco ,
H. Van den Berg ,
I. Hininger ,
A.-M. Rousell  and
M. Chopra
...Show all authors
M. E. O'Neill
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Diet & Health, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, UK
Y. Carroll
Affiliation:
Nutritional Sciences, Department of Food Science and Technology, University College, Cork, Republic of Ireland
B. Corridan
Affiliation:
Nutritional Sciences, Department of Food Science and Technology, University College, Cork, Republic of Ireland
B. Olmedilla
Affiliation:
Unidad de Vitaminas, Seccion de Nutricion, Clinica Puerta de Hierro, San Martin de Porres 4, 28035 Madrid, Spain
F. Granado
Affiliation:
Unidad de Vitaminas, Seccion de Nutricion, Clinica Puerta de Hierro, San Martin de Porres 4, 28035 Madrid, Spain
I. Blanco
Affiliation:
Unidad de Vitaminas, Seccion de Nutricion, Clinica Puerta de Hierro, San Martin de Porres 4, 28035 Madrid, Spain
H. Van den Berg
Affiliation:
TNO_CIVO Institute, PO Box 360 (Utrechsweg 48), 3700 AJ Zeist, The Netherlands
I. Hininger
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biochimie Micronutrients-Radicaux Libres, UFR des Sciences Pharmaceutiques et Biologiques, Domaine de la Merci, 38700 La Tronche, France
A.-M. Rousell
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biochimie Micronutrients-Radicaux Libres, UFR des Sciences Pharmaceutiques et Biologiques, Domaine de la Merci, 38700 La Tronche, France
M. Chopra
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Diet & Health, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, UK
S. Southon
Affiliation:
Institute of Food Research, Colney, Norwich, UK
D. I. Thurnham*
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Diet & Health, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, UK
*
*Corresponding author: Professor D. I. Thurnham, fax +44 2870 324965, email di.thurnham@ulst.ac.uk
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

A food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and carotenoid database with information on α- and β-carotene, lutein, lycopene and β-cryptoxanthin was prepared and used to compare the carotenoid intakes in five European countries: UK, Republic of Ireland, Spain, France and The Netherlands. Eighty, age- (25–45 years) and sex-matched volunteers were recruited in each of the five countries. A FFQ and carotenoid database was prepared of the most commonly consumed carotenoid rich foods in the participating countries and the information was used to calculate frequency and intake of carotenoid-rich foods. The median total carotenoid intake based on the sum of the five carotenoids, was significantly higher (P<0.05) in France (16.1 mg/day) and lower in Spain (9.5 mg/day,) than the other countries, where the average intake was approximately 14 mg/day. Comparison of dietary source of carotenoids showed that carrots were the major source of β-carotene in all countries except Spain where spinach was most important. Likewise, carrots were also the main source of α-carotene. Tomato or tomato products, were the major source of lycopene. Lutein was mainly obtained from peas in Republic of Ireland and the UK, however, spinach was found to be the major source in other countries. In all countries, β-cryptoxanthin was primarily obtained from citrus fruit. Comparing the data with that from specific European country studies suggests that the FFQ and carotenoid database described in the present paper can be used for comparative dietary intake studies within Europe. The results show that within Europe there are differences in the specific intake of some carotenoids which are related to different foods consumed by people in different countries.

Keywords

CarotenoidsFood frequency questionnaireDiet

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 85 , Issue 4 , April 2001 , pp. 499 - 507
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2001

References

Bingham, SA, Gill, C, Welch, A, Cassidy, A, Runswick, SA, Oakes, S, Lubin, R, Thurnham, DI, Key, TJA, Roe, DA, Khaw, KT & Day, NE (1997) Validation of dietary assessment methods in the UK arm of EPIC using weighed records, and 24-hour urinary nitrogen and potassium and serum vitamin C and carotenoids as biomarkers. International Journal of Epidemiology 26(Suppl. 1), S137–S151.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Block, G, Patterson, B & Subar, A (1992) Fruit, vegetables, and cancer prevention, A review of epidemiological evidence. Nutrition Cancer 18, 1–30.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bone, RA & Landrum, JT (1985) Preliminary identification of the human macular pigment. Vision Research 25, 1531–1535.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Burlingame, B, CEWest EJ, Poortvliet (1993) Carotenoid content of New Zealand foods In The carotenoid content of foods with special reference to developing countries.[CE, West & EJ, Poortvliet, editors]. Arlington, VA: Vitamin A Field Support Project (VITAL).Google Scholar
Carroll, YL, Corridan, BM & Morrissey, PA (1999) Carotenoids in young and elderly healthy humans: dietary intakes, biochemical status and diet-plasma relationships. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 53, 644–653.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Collins, AR, Olmedilla, B, Southon, S, Granado, F & Duthie, SJ (1998) Serum carotenoids and oxidative damage in human lymphocytes. Carcinogenesis 19, 2159–2162.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Crawley, H (1992) Food Portion Sizes.Ministry of Agriculture,Fisheries and Food, London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Department of Health (1994) Nutritional aspects of cardiovascular disease. Report of the cardiovascular review group,Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy. Report on Health and Social Subjects 46. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Diet & Health (1989) Implications for reducing chronic disease.Committee on Diet and Health, Food and Nutrition Board Washington: National Academy Press.Google Scholar
Enger, S, Longnecker, M, Shikany, J, Swenseid, M, Chen, M, Harper, J & Haile, R (1995) Questionnaire assessment of intake of specific carotenoids. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention 4, 201–205.Google ScholarPubMed
Forman, MR, Lanza, E, Yong, L-C, Holden, JM, Graubard, BI, Beecher, GR, Melitz, M, Brown, ED & Smith, JC (1993) The correlation between two dietary assessments of carotenoid intake and plasma carotenoid concentrations: application of a carotenoid food-composition. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 58, 518–524.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Friis, S, Kjaer, K, Stripp, C & Overvad, K (1997) Reproducibility and relative validity of a self-administered food frequency questionnaire applied to younger women. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology 50, 303–311.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gaziano, JM, Manson, JE, Branch, LG, Colditz, GA, Willett, WC & Buring, JE (1995) A prospective study of consumption of carotenoids in fruits and vegetables and decreased cardiovascular mortality in the elderly. Annals of Epidemiology 5, 255–260.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gebhardt, SE, Cutrufelli, R & Matthews, RH (1982) Composition of foods: fruits and fruit juices – raw, processed, prepared.Washington DC: US Dept of Agriculture. Handbook No. 8–11.Google Scholar
Goldbohm, RA, Brants, HAM, Hulshof, KFAM & van den Brandt, PA (1998) The contribution of various foods to intake of vitamin A and carotenoids in the Netherlands. International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research 68, 378–383.Google ScholarPubMed
Granado, F, Olmedilla, B, Blanco, IRojas-Hidalgo, E (1992) Carotenoid composition of raw and cooked Spanish vegetables. Journal of Agricultural Chemistry 40, 2135–2140.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Granado, F, Olmedilla, B, Blanco, I & Rojas-Hidalgo, E (1996) Major fruit and vegetable contributors to the main serum carotenoids in the Spanish diet. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 50, 246–250.Google Scholar
Granado, F, Olmedilla, B, Gil-Martinez, E & Blanco, I (1998) Lutein ester in serum after lutein supplementation in human subjects British Journal of Nutrition 80, 445–449.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Haraldsdottir, J (1993) Minimizing error in the field: quality control in dietary surveys. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 47, S19–S24.Google ScholarPubMed
Hart, DJ & Scott, KJ (1995) Development and evaluation of an HPLC method for the analysis of carotenes in vegetables and fruits in the UK. Food Chemistry 54, 101–111.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hennekens, CH (1986) Micronutrients and cancer prevention. New England Journal of Medicine 315, 1288–1289.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Heinonen, MI, Ollilainen, V, Linkola, E, Varo, P & Koivistoinen, P (1988) Carotenoids and retinoids in Finnish foods: Dietary fats. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 1, 334–340.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heinonen, MI, Ollilainen, V, Linkola, EK, Varo, PT & Koivistoinen, PE (1989) Carotenoids in Finnish foods: Vegetables, fruits, and berries. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 37, 655–659.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hininger, I, Chopra, M, Thurnham, DI, Laporte, F, Richard, M-J, Favier, A & Roussel, A-M (1997) Effect of increased fruit and vegetable intake on the susceptibility of lipoprotein oxidation in smokers. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 51, 601–606.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Holland, B, Unwin, ID & Buss, DH (1991) Vegetables, herbs and spices First supplement to McCance & Widdowson's The Composition of Foods.Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry.Google Scholar
Howard, AN, Williams, NR, Palmer, CR, Cambou, JP, Evans, AE, Foote, JW, Marques-Vidal, P, McCrum, EE, Ruidavets, JB, Nigdikar, SV, Rajput-Williams, J & Thurnham, DI (1996) Do hydroxy-carotenoids prevent coronary heart disease? A comparison between Belfast and Toulouse. International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research 66, 113–118.Google ScholarPubMed
Hulshof, K, Van der Heijden, LJM & Donders-Engelen, M (1992) Maten, geivieliten en code nummers (Measurements, weights and code numbers). TNO report 92.003. Zeist, The Netherlands: TNO Nutrition and Food Research Institute.Google Scholar
IARC Working Group (1998) Carotenoids. Lyon: WHO InternationalAgency for Research on Cancer.Google Scholar
Jost, JP, Simon, C, Nuttens, MC, Bingham, A, Ruidavets, JB, Cambou, JP, Arveiler, D, Lecerf, JM, Schlienger, JL & Douste-Blazy, P (1990) Comparison of dietary patterns between populations samples in the three French MONICA nutritional surveys. Revue D Epidemiologie et de Sante Publique 38, 517–523.Google ScholarPubMed
Mangels, AR, Holden, JM, Beecher, GR, Forman, MR & Lanza, E (1993) Carotenoid content of fruits and vegetables: an evaluation of analytical data. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 93, 284–296.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Margetts, BM & Jackson, AA (1996) The determinants of plasma β-carotene: interaction between smoking and other lifestyle factors. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 50, 236–238.Google ScholarPubMed
McClean, R, McCrum, E, Scally, G, McMaster, D, Patterson, C, Jackson, N & Evans, A (1990) Dietary patterns in the Belfast MONICA project. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 49, 297–305.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food (1993) Food Portion Sizes. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Ocke, MC, Bueno de Mesquita, HB, Goddijn, HE, Jansen, A, Pols, MA, van Staveren, WA & Kromhout, D (1997) The Dutch EPIC food frequency questionnaire. 1. Description of the questionnaire, and relative validity and reproducibility for food groups. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 26, S37–S48.Google Scholar
Ollilainen, V, Heinonen, MI, Linkola, EK, Varo, PT & Koivistoinen, PE (1988) Carotenoids and retinoids in Finnish foods: meat and meat products. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 1, 178–188.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ollilainen, V, Heinonen, MI, Linkola, EK, Varo, PT & Koivistoinen, PE (1989) Carotenoids and retinoids in Finnish foods: dairy products and eggs. Journal of Dairy Science 72, 2257–2265.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Olmedilla, B, Granado, F, Blanco, I, Rojas-Hidalgo, E, KW, Waldron, IT, Johnson & GR, Fenwick (1993) Quantitation of pro-vitamin A and non-provitamin A carotenoids in the fruits most commonly consumed in Spain In Food and Cancer Prevention 141–145. [KW, Waldron, IT, Johnson & GR, Fenwick, editors]. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry.Google Scholar
Olmedilla, B, Granado, F, Gil-Martinez, E & Blanco, I (1995) Freezing effect on carotenoid content in raw and cooked vegetables and fruits. The second international food database conference. Food composition Research: The Broader Context, Lahti, Finland.Google Scholar
Olmedilla, B, Granado, F, Blanco, I, Gil-Martinez, E & Rojas-Hidalgo, E (1996) Contenido de carotenoides en verduras y frutas de may or consumo en Espana (Carotenoid content in fruit and vegetables most frequently consumed in Spain).Madrid: Secetaria General del Instituto Nacional de la Salud.Google Scholar
O'Neill, ME (1997) Factors affecting carotenoid absorption and a comparative assessment of carotenoid intakes in five European countries. University of Ulster, D.Phil thesis.Google Scholar
O'Neill, ME & Thurnham, DI (1998) Intestinal absorption of β-carotene, lycopene and lutein in men and women following a standard meal; response curves in the triglyceride-rich lipoprotein fraction. British Journal of Nutrition 79, 149–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paul, AA & Southgate, DAT (1994) In McCance & Widdowson's The Composition of Foods, 5th Edition. Royal Society of Chemistry: Cambridge, UK.Google Scholar
Renaud, S & de Lorgeril, M (1993) The French paradox: dietary factors and cigarette smoking-related health risks. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 686, 299–309.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Scott, KJ, Thurnham, DI, Hart, DJ, Bingham, SA & Day, K (1996) The correlation between the intake of lutein, lycopene and β-carotene from vegetables and fruits, and blood plasma concentrations in a group of women aged 50⌓65 years in the UK British Journal of Nutrition 75, 409–418.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seddon, JM, Ajani, UA, Sperduto, RD, Hiller, R, Blair, N, Burton, TC, Farber, MD, Gragoudas, ES, Hailer, J, Miller, DT, Yannuzzi, LA & Willett, W (1994) Dietary carotenoids, vitamins A, C and E and advanced age-related macular degeneration. JAMA 272, 1413–1420.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tonucci, LH, Holden, JM, Beecher, GR, Khackik, F, Davis, CS & Mulokozi, G (1995) Carotenoid content of thermally processed tomato-based products. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 43, 579–586.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van het Hof, KH, Tijburg, LBM, Pietrzik, K & Westrate, JA (1999) Influence of feeding different vegetables on plasma levels of carotenoids, folate and vitamin C. Effect of disruption of the vegetable matrix. British Journal of Nutrition 82, 203–212.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van #Rossum, CTM, van de Mheen, H, Witterman, JCM, Grobbee, E & Machenback, JP (2000) Education and nutrient intake in Dutch elderly people. The Rotterdam study. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 54, 159–165.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vollebregt, YCJ & Feskens, EJM (1993) Samenstelling van voedingsmiddelentabellen met gehalten aan retinol en b-caroteen, vitamin E en pectine ten behove van oa de Zutphen-studie RIVM (Collection of food composition tables with content of retinol, beta-carotene, vitamin E and pectin and other uses in the Zutphen study). Report no. 441111–441002.Google Scholar
World Health Organization (1990) Diet nutrition and prevention of chronic diseases WHO Technical Report Series 797. Geneva: World Health Organization.Google Scholar
Willett, WC, Sampson, L, Brown, ML, Stampfer, MJ, Rosner, B, Hennekens, CH & Speizer, FE (1988) The use of a self-administered questionnaire to assess diet four years in the past. American Journal of Epidemiology 127, 188–199.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ziegler, RG (1989) A review of epidemiological evidence that carotenoids reduce the risk of cancer. Journal of Nutrition 119, 116-122.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed