Zeaxanthin is a carotenoid commonly used alongside lutein for preserving retinal health.
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Zeaxanthin is a carotenoid found in the diet. It is commonly discussed alongside lutein as they are both carotenoids found in high levels in dark green vegetables (such as kale or parsley), orange and yellow fruits, and are a major health factor in the yolk of eggs.
Dark greens actually contain more zeaxanthin than do eggs but the zeaxanthin within eggs have superior absorption, making them a more practical source of zeaxanthin as well as lutein.
When it comes to the structure of zeaxanthin, it is a carotenoid and more specifically in the subgroup of xanthophylls (carotenes, the other subgroup, are non-polar molecules without any oxygen while xanthophylls polar molecules with at least one oxygen molecule); lutein is also a xanthophyll while other supplements that happen to be xanthophylls include both astaxanthin and fucoxanthin.
When it comes to the carotenoid class, there are approximately 30-50 that are normally in the human diet with 10-15 of them being able to be detected in serum. These carotenoids are mostly related to lutein and zeaxanthin, being their metabolites or related molecules, and as carotenoids they are able to interact with Vitamin A metabolism to a high degree (as β-carotene is not only the plant form of Vitamin A, but a carotenoid itself). When it comes to zeaxanthin, it only makes up 3% of total human serum carotenoids (in a non-supplemented state) with lutein and lycopene both taking up 20% and β-carotene a mere 10% although it, along with lutein, have more relative importance in the human retina than do the other carotenoids.
Xanthophylls in general seem to have more relevance than carotenes in the brain, consisting of 72% total carotenoids whereas the opposite trend seems to exist in the periphery with 57% of total carotenoids being carotenes.
Lutein and zeaxanthin are non-vitamin carotenoids, meaning that they cannot convert into Vitamin A and, alongside their common metabolite (meso-zeaxanthin) they are referred to as the macular pigments.
When it comes to lutein, the bioavailability of it seems to be significantly higher when consumed from eggs when compared to either vegetables or dietary supplements even when the amount of dietary fat provided is similar; with 6mg lutein increasing serum lutein 323% with eggs but only 82% and 140% with supplements and spinach respectively. Fat itself is already a major determinant of carotenoid absorption as, without dietary fat, their absorption is greatly hindered but carotenoids seem to also experience better absorption from cholesterol and phospholipids present in eggs. This benefit to absorption applies to more than just the carotenoids within the eggs however, as ingesting cooked eggs alongside vegetables is able to increase how many carotenoids are absorbed from the vegetables.
Oral ingestion of food products containing zeaxanthin have been found to increase circulating zeaxanthin with one study giving subjects an egg containing 487.31 μg zeaxanthin seeing a 212% increase in serum zeaxanthin when compared to the group given a normal egg (85 μg zeaxanthin) with another study also finding that eggs with high levels of zeaxanthin (213+/-85 μg) can increase serum zeaxanthin 142% higher than control.
The serum concentration of zeaxanthin seen in these studies with eggs (127.5ng/mL from 487.31 μg and 0.105-0.116μM from 213 μg).
Zeaxanthin and lutein appear to have more relevance in the cerebellum where their concentration is higher than the frontal, occipital, and temporal cortices which seemed to be opposite of α-tocopherol (Vitamin E) which was low in the cerebellum; the occipital cortex seemed to be relatively high in the cryptoxanthin carotenoids while ingestion of pure zeaxanthin in primates appears to increase the amount of zeaxanthin that reaches the cerebellum and frontal cortex.
When zeaxanthin is ingested at 3.9μM/kg in primates for 24-101 weeks (dose estimated to be 15-fold higher than standard lab food) it increases zeaxanthin concentrations in the cerebellum (to the highest degee), occipital and frontal cortices, and pons (to the lowest degree) which differs from isolated lutein that drastically increases lutein concentrations of the occipital cortex; the increases seen in brain tissue are correlated to the changes seen in retinal tissue.
Both lutein and zeaxanthin share a common metabolite, called meso-zeaxanthin.
Given how zeaxanthin is a macular carotenoid that accumulates in the retina after consumption and the eyes being intimately connected with the brain, zeaxanthin and other carotenoids have been investigated for their effects on neural tissue. Furthermore, it seems that xanthophylls (lutein and zeaxanthin) are more prominent in the brain relative to carotenes (such as b-carotene and lycopene) while carotenes are more represented in the periphery; this study found that 72% of brain carotenoids (57% of peripheral carotenoids were carotenes) and elsewhere brain xanthophylls have been found to be 66-77% total carotenoids.
In a study on octogenarians and centenarians, lutein and zeaxanthin appeared to have the most significant correlations with cognitive performance when compared to other carotenoids, with higher macular carotenoid concentrations being associated with lower dementia severity and zeaxanthin being positively associated with better overall cognitive performance. There seemed to be a specific relation between zeaxanthin and improved verbal fluency and this association has been found elsewhere where elevated lutein and zeaxanthins are associated with better cognitive function (global cognition, memory, and executive function) while zeaxanthin is further associated with processing speed.
One study which ingestigated a combination of omega-3 fatty acids (350mg DHA and 650mg EPA), lutein (10mg), and zeaxanthin (2mg) found that, when given to older subjects who were already taking a few antioxidant supplements, that the addition of all three of them or the addition of just the carotenoids failed to exert any cognitive protective effect after one year.
Zeaxanthin appears to have direct antioxidant potential against peroxyl radicals, being able to scavenge them regardless of whether they are water or lipid soluble.
Zeaxanthin, along with lutein and their common metabolite meso-zeaxanthin (MZ) are referred to as the macular carotenoids due to their high presence in the human retina. The macular carotenoids are the major components of what is known as 'macular pigment' which helps protect the eyes from light-induced damages and is highly protective against age-related macular degeneration; lutein and zeaxanthin are investigated for their effects in the eyes because whether you supplement them or consume them through the diet oral ingestion of these carotenoids increases the level of them inside the retina where they exert protective effects.
A buttermilk drink containing lutein (1.38+/-0.16 mg), zeaxanthin (0.21+/-0.02 mg), and DHA from fish oil (160+/-10 mg) for one year in older adults with suboptimal visual acuity has shown monthly improvements in Macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and visual acuity when compared to control.
Lutein and zeaxanthin are both found in breast milk where the amount that is detected in breast milk is related to the amount of these two carotenoids in the blood.