Original Article
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2009) 63, 1220–1225; doi:10.1038/ejcn.2009.46; published online 17 June 2009
Intervention study with a high or low antioxidant capacity diet: effects on circulating 
-carotene
D Del Rio1, S Valtueña2, N Pellegrini1, M A Bianchi1, D Ardigò2, L Franzini2, F Scazzina1, L Monti3, I Zavaroni2 and F Brighenti2
- 1Human Nutrition Unit, Department of Public Health, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
- 2Department of Internal Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
- 3Core Lab, Diabetology, Endocrinology, and Metabolic Disease Unit, Medicine Division, Hospital San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
Correspondence: Professor N Pellegrini, Human Nutrition Unit, Department of Public Health, University of Parma, Via Volturno 39, 43100 Parma, Italy. E-mail: nicoletta.pellegrini@unipr.it
Received 13 January 2009; Revised 7 April 2009; Accepted 15 April 2009; Published online 17 June 2009.
Abstract
Background and objectives:
A cross-sectional observation suggests that total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of the diet positively affects plasma concentrations of 
-carotene independent of -carotene intake. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of two dietary strategies, designed to be comparable in fruits, vegetables, fibre, alcohol and -carotene intake but substantially different in their TAC, on changes in antioxidant intake and antioxidant status, and in particular in circulating -carotene concentrations.
Subjects:
A randomized cross-over intervention trial involving 33 healthy participants and consisting of two 14-day dietary periods (high TAC diet, HT; low TAC diet, LT) with a 14-day washout in between was conducted.
Results:
Energy, macronutrient, dietary fibre, alcohol and -carotene intake was not significantly different between LT and HT, whereas intake of other carotenoids and dietary TAC was significantly higher in the HT than in the LT (P<0.001). Circulating carotenoids (with the exception of 
-carotene, which followed an inverse trend) and -tocopherol decreased significantly during the LT and increased during the HT period. Among these, -carotene almost doubled its concentration in plasma after the HT diet.
Conclusions:
The increase in circulating -carotene along with the increase in dietary TAC suggests that plasma -carotene could be a marker of TAC intake rather than of -carotene intake itself. This may explain, in part, why -carotene supplementation alone has shown no benefit in chronic disease prevention and adds to a putative beneficial role of high dietary TAC diets, which merits further investigation.
Keywords:
diet, antioxidants, total antioxidant capacity, -carotene, intervention study
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