title: The effects of daily consumption of β-cryptoxanthin-rich tangerines and β-carotene-rich sweet potatoes on vitamin A and carotenoid concentrations in plasma and breast milk of Bangladeshi women with low vitamin A status in a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The potential of β-cryptoxanthin (CX)-rich foods to form vitamin A (VA) in humans in not well understood.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We measured the effects of consuming CX- and β-carotene (BC)-rich foods on plasma and breast milk VA and carotenoids in lactating women with low VA status.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were randomly assigned to 4 groups (n = 34, 34, 34, and 33, respectively) receiving orange-fleshed sweet potatoes (OFSPs) (12 mg BC/d), tangerines (5.3 mg CX/d), white-fleshed sweet potatoes (WFSPs) with a VA supplement (0.5 mg/d), or WFSPs 2 times/d, 6 d/wk for 3 wk. All except the VA group received placebo capsules identical in appearance to VA supplements. Changes in plasma and breast milk VA, BC, and CX were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Plasma retinol increased in the VA group. Plasma BC in the OFSP group and CX in the tangerine group increased 250% and 830%, respectively; apparent relative absorption in the CX group, considering the amounts consumed, was 4 times that in the BC group. Mean (±SEM) changes in milk VA in the OFSP (0.028 ± 0.074 μmol/L) and tangerine (0.067 ± 0.091 μmol/L) groups did not differ from those in the control (-0.077 ± 0.068 μmol/L) or VA (0.277 ± 0.094 μmol/L) group. Milk CX increased in the tangerine group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  VA capsules increased plasma and milk VA concentrations. The greater change in CX concentrations in the tangerine group than in BC concentrations in the OFSP group suggests that CX in tangerines was better absorbed, but both foods failed to increase milk VA concentrations. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01420406.
authors.affiliation: Western Human Nutrition Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Davis, CA (BJB and TT); the Program in International and Community Nutrition, University of California Davis, Davis, CA (BJB and TT); and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh (KMJ and MJ).
authors.forename: Tami
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: Betty J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Burri
authors.forename: Kazi M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Jamil
authors.forename: Maleka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jamil
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001459:Bangladesh / Q000453:epidemiology; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000097:blood*; D002957:Citrus / Q000737:chemistry; D065366:Cryptoxanthins; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D027723:Ipomoea batatas / Q000737:chemistry; D007774:Lactation / Q000187:drug effects; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D009752:Nutritional Status; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000097:blood*; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D024341:Xanthophylls / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D055815:Young Adult; D019207:beta Carotene / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D065366:Cryptoxanthins; D024341:Xanthophylls; D019207:beta Carotene; D014801:Vitamin A; D002338:Carotenoids