Postprandial plasma carotenoid responses following consumption of strawberries, red wine, vitamin C or spinach by elderly women

This study investigated the postprandial plasma responses of carotenoids fo r 24 h after feeding five specific breakfast beverages; four of which had l ow or no carotenoid content, In seven fasting healthy elderly female subjec ts a blood sample (baseline) was obtained, after which they were given a br eakfast beverage, containing one of the following: 1) strawberries (240 g); 2) ascorbic acid (1250 mg); 3) spinach (294 g); 4) red wine (300 mL); and 5) control (breakfast beverage only). Blood samples were collected at 0.5, 1, 4, 7, 11, 15 and 24 h, Plasma carotenoids were measured using HPLC, No s ignificant differences were found in the levels of the plasma carotenoids m easured among the various treatments at baseline. In the spinach treatment, plasma lutein, zeaxanthin and p-carotene levels at 7, 11, 15 and 24 h were significantly higher than those at baseline, as expected, All of the carot enoids measured in the control and vitamin C treatments, at subsequent samp ling times were not significantly different from those at baseline, However , for most carotenoids, strawberry and red wine feeding resulted in signifi cantly lower carotenoids values from baseline at 11 and 15 h, Subjects who received a diet with low levels of carotenoids, but whose postprandial plas ma levels of carotenoids remain steady, might be explained by a mechanism t hat promotes secretion of carotenoids into the circulation, Assuming that p lasma carotenoids are being used over time, we hypothesize that strawberrie s and red wine contain some substances that interfere with the secretion of carotenoids into the circulation.