Mixed Carotenoids Capsules

Mixed Carotenoids is a broad spectrum carotenoid supplement containing natural alpha- and beta-carotenes combined with lutein, lycopene, zeaxanthin and cryptoxanthin. All carotenoids have antioxidant activity, but their activities vary depending on which tissues they are deposited into preferentially. Mixed carotenoid supplements protect against imbalances caused by excessive intake of only one member of this diverse phytonutrient family.

High doses of beta-carotene alone have been shown to reduce blood levels of other carotenoids such as lycopene and lutein. Much of the research that has found beta-carotene to be a protective phytochemical has actually studied the intake of whole fruits and vegetables, which are sources of a variety of carotenoids including natural beta-carotene. The xanthophylls, lutein and zeaxanthin, may play a special role in the health of the eyes, as one study found that their long-term intake appeared to support the function of the macula. The carotenoids, beta-carotene and lycopene, have a number of antioxidant functions, such as protecting against the singlet oxygen, one of the most destructive types of free radical.

Serving Size: 1 capsule
Servings Per Container: 30

Active Ingredients:

Natural beta-carotene 25,000 IU (approximately 50% 9 cis beta-carotene)
alpha-carotene 4750 IU
Lutein (from marigolds) 5 mg
Lycopene (from tomatoes) 2.5 mg
Zeaxanthin 246 mcg
Cryptoxanthin 8 mg

Inactive Ingredients: vegetarian capsule, cellulose and magnesium stearate.

Recommended Dosage:
One capsule daily with meals, or as directed by your health care practitioner.

Read customer questions and answers about Tissue Protection on our blog.

Carotenoids are a group of over 600 compounds, excluding isomers, which are biosynthesized by plants and microorganisms but not animals. They are involved in the photosynthesis process, in conversion to vitamin A and in plant leaf abscission. Furthermore, they form the color components of many plants (including flowers) and animals and especially birds. All of the carotenoids have a similar chemical structure and the vast majority of the active forms in the human cell are the trans configuration molecules.

A central function of carotenoids is as a precursor to vitamin A although, of the major dietary carotenoids, b-carotene and -carotene are the only types where the conversion is significant. The conversion rate for b-carotene is that 6?g of b-carotene provide 1?g of retinal equivalent.
Carotenoids, like vitamin A, are known to moderately enhance the immune response and, depending on the carotenoid, this can emphasize a stimulatory effect on either the Th1 or Th2 systems.
The carotenoids are relatively potent antioxidants and may well have a major role to play in specific free radical quenching in tissues where they are present in high concentration, e.g. the eye (lutein and zeaxanthin), the adrenal gland (b-carotene and lycopene), the prostate and testes (lycopene and b-carotene)

In virtually every epidemiological analysis, increased consumption of fruit and vegetables significantly correlates with lowered risk of developing cancer. While the reasons for this are almost certainly multi-factorial, much interest has focused on the carotenoids as being an important reason for this effect.

Thus while epidemiological evidence is certainly present which correlates dietary intake of b-carotene with lowered risk of developing lung cancer (Canfield et al., 1993), when this has been subjected to intervention trials using b-carotene supplements, the effect has not been reproduced. Indeed in two studies, there was an increased risk associated with b-carotene supplementation (Heinonen et al., 1994: Omenn et al, 1996)

Hence there are opposing sets of data but these may be reconciled in the following way. The plasma contains 30 or so carotenoids. The major ones, which constitute 70% of the total, are shown below: b-carotene

Lutein & Zeaxanthin Lycopene B-Carotene A-Carotene B-Cryptoxanthin
In the normal diet containing high quantities of fruit and vegetables, all of these carotenes are absorbed. Thus the epidemiological effects of carotenoids come from the presentation of a complex mixture rather than the application of a single species.

Recent large dietary studies have suggested that intake of several carotenoids is associated with more powerful protection for cellular health than is the intake of single members of the carotenoid family (Am J Epidemiol 2002;156:536-547; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2000;9:357-365).

Whereas beta-carotene has received more attention than other carotenoids, early research documenting the effects of high beta-carotene diets overlooked the fact that these diets were also high in other carotenoids (J Am Coll Nutr 1995;14:419-27).
High doses of beta-carotene alone may reduce blood levels of other carotenoids (Am J Clin Nutr 2000; 71:950-5).
All carotenoids have antioxidant activity, but some are deposited preferentially into specific body tissues, as in the affinity of lutein for the retina (Ann NY Acad Sci 1998;854:443-7; Int J Vitam Nutr Res 1998;68:349-53).
Synthetic beta-carotene has failed to benefit health in several human clinical trials (Drug Saf 1999;21:253-66), whereas natural beta-carotene was studied in two trials with positive results (J Am Coll Nutr 1995;14:536 [abstr #48]; Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 1999;82:549-53).
Provitamin A carotenoids such as alpha- and beta-carotene represent excellent sources of vitamin A with no danger of vitamin A toxicity (Arch Biochem Biophys 2004;430:77-88).
Lycopene, one of the most abundant carotenoids in the body, has been associated in human studies with optimum immune function (Proc Nutr Soc 1998;57:3A) and prostate health (Nutr Cancer 1999;33:159-64; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2001;10:861-8).
The xanthophylls, lutein and zeaxanthin, may play a special role in the health of the eyes; studies have found that their long-term intake appeared to support the health of the macula and the ocular lens (Optometry 2004;75:216-30; Nutrition 2003;19:21-4).
Alpha-carotene and cryptoxanthin appear to confer preferential protection to lung tissue (J Natl Cancer Inst 1996;88:612-5; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2001; 10:767-73).

Mixed Carotenoids Capsules by Karuna

Mixed Carotenoids Capsules