Factors that affect how carotenoids are taken in and used
What it found
How much carotenoid the body can take in and use from plant foods depends on many things, including fat, fiber, cooking, particle size and the person eating them.
The authors say these factors can mean carotenoids in high amounts in plant foods are not used well.
What they found
What carotenoids do
Carotenoids are important as precursors of vitamin A. They are also important for prevention of cancers, coronary heart diseases, age-related macular degeneration and cataract.
Factors affecting uptake
How much carotenoid the body can take in and use is influenced by many dietary factors. These include fat, fiber, the dose of carotenoid, where the carotenoid sits in the plant tissue, heat treatment, particle size of the food, the type of carotenoid, interactions between carotenoids, the isomeric form and molecular linkage, and characteristics of the person.
High amounts not enough
Even when carotenoids are found in high quantities in plant foods, their utilization may be unsatisfactory. Some factors are known to interfere as negative effectors.
What the authors conclude
“Bioaccessibility and bioefficacy of carotenoids are known to be influenced by numerous factors including dietary factors such as fat, fiber, dosage of carotenoid, location of carotenoid in the plant tissue, heat treatment, particle size of food, carotenoid species, interactions among carotenoids, isomeric form and molecular linkage and subject characteristics.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say plant food based approaches have a real potential on prevention of vitamin A deficiency in a sustainable way.
- They note that even when carotenoids are found in high quantities in plant foods their utilization may be unsatisfactory because some factors are known to interfere as negative effectors.
How it was done
Vitamin A deficiency is one of the most common deficiency disorders in the world. The authors say plant food based approaches have real potential to prevent it in a sustainable way.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This is a review of factors, not a study in people. It cannot show how much carotenoid a person actually takes in or uses from a given food.
- It cannot show that changing any one factor, such as adding fat or cooking, will prevent vitamin A deficiency.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka
The paper
- Title
- A review on factors influencing bioaccessibility and bioefficacy of carotenoids
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Priyadarshani AM (2017). A review on factors influencing bioaccessibility and bioefficacy of carotenoids. Critical reviews in food science and nutrition. doi:10.1080/10408398.2015.1023431PubMed 26168011DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error