While chicken eggs are best known for their high-quality protein and widespread use in bakery and other food products, they are also an excellent source of lutein. Low lutein intake has been implicated as a risk factor in age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of vision loss among older Americans. The macula is located in the retina, behind the pupil, and is responsible for central vision. Lutein and another carotenoid, zeaxanthin, accumulate within the macula and impart a yellow pigment that helps protect the eye.
Now scientists have found that the lutein present in eggs is more readily absorbed into the bloodstream than lutein from other sources--possibly because of components in the egg's yolk, like lecithin. Their research showed that the concentration of lutein in volunteers' blood serum was three times greater after eating eggs than after consuming the same amount of lutein from other sources, including cooked spinach and two types of lutein supplements. Elizabeth J. Johnson, Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts; phone (617) 556-3204, e-mail elizabeth.johnson@tufts.edu.
