Want to know about lutein sources? Read the article to learn about the health benefits, deficiency signs and a few food sources of lutein. Make full use of the information presented in this web page to improve your health and fitness.
There are almost 600 naturally-occurring carotenoid that are known to human beings. Lutein is one of them. It is a yellow or orange pigment which is mainly present in some fruits and vegetables. Lutein absorbs blue light, and thus, appears yellow at low concentration and orange-red at high concentrations. Because of the color, it is used as a natural coloring agent in commercial food products. In your body, lutein is found in the retinas of the eyes. It is considered to be necessary for good vision. According to majority of health care professionals, 6-20 mg of lutein is recommended for daily intake. Let’s learn about some of the major health benefits and deficiency symptoms of lutein.
Health Benefits of Lutein
Lutein provides you with several health benefits. Being a carotenoid, it acts as a powerful antioxidant and protects your body cells from the harmful effects of free radicals. Lutein is believed to boost the activity of the immune system of human body. As has already been mentioned in the introductory paragraph of this article that lutein is present in your eyes. It is found to be concentrated in the macula, which is a small area of the retina responsible for vision. It is believed that there exists a direct relationship between the pigmentation in the eye and intake of lutein. Lutein is also believed to play a role in enabling the human eye to detect polarized light.
Certain scientific studies have shown that lutein has the ability to protect the eyes from oxidative damage induced by light, and aging. Lutein owes its ability to maintain the sound health of your eyes to its antioxidant and ultraviolet light filtration properties. Thus, lutein plays a great role in reducing the risk of various eye problems. Some of such problems include cataracts, age-related macular degeneration and other eye problems.
Deficiency of Lutein
There is no scientific evidence that shows that the deficiency of lutein directly causes any disease or health condition in human body especially in eyes. However, long term insufficient intake of lutein may be associated with some chronic health problems. The most prominent health issue with the deficiency of lutein is the increased vulnerability of your body to develop cancer in some of its parts. There is an obvious reason behind it. Lutein is an antioxidant which protects the cells of your body from the action of free radicals present in it. Free radicals have the potential to trigger the initiation of cancer. Another major health problem associated with lutein deficiency is cardiac disorders. Since lutein is necessary for normal vision, its deficiency may affect the function of your eyes.
Food Sources of Lutein
Lutein is mostly found in fruits, vegetables and in some spices. Following is a list of some of the examples of foods in which you can find lutein in abundance. Make sure that you make the given lutein sources an essential part of you regular diet.
- Peas
- Corn
- Broccoli
- Plums
- Leek
- Corn
- Wheat
- Egg yolk
- Carrot
- Popcorn
- Kale
- Spinach
- Dandelion greens
- Paprika
- Pepper
- Cayenne
- Cress
- Turnip
- Chard
- Collards
- Mustard greens
- Tomato
- Papaya
- Zucchini
- Romaine lettuce
By going through the above account, you must have learned that lutein, present in fruits and vegetables, is a natural part of your daily diet. Though little in amount, lutein is required for sound health. Those individuals who suffer from its deficiency are often recommended to have lutein-fortified foods available in the market. Many people, particularly adults, have a poor absorption of the nutrients. Such people are often deficient in lutein. For them, a sublingual spray is available in drug stores. A health care professional’s prescription is necessary to obtain it.