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Dietary carotenoid intake and osteoporosis: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2005–2018

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Abstract

Summary

Higher intake of β-carotene and β-cryptoxanthin were associated with lower risk of osteoporosis. A very high intake of lutein + zeaxanthin was also associated with lower risk of osteoporosis. These results support the beneficial role of carotenoids on bone health.

Purpose

To examine the associations of α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, and lutein + zeaxanthin intake with the risk of osteoporosis based on the cross-sectional data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), 2005–2018.

Methods

This study identified individuals ≥ 50 years old with valid and complete data on carotenoid intake and bone mineral density (BMD). Intake of α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, and lutein + zeaxanthin was averaged from two 24-h recall interviews. BMD was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and converted to T-scores; osteoporosis was defined as a T-score ≤  − 2.5. We used logistic regression models to test the associations between carotenoids and osteoporosis, adjusting for factors such as age, sex, race, and education.

Results

Participants were on average 61.9 years of age, with 57.5% identifying as females. Higher quintiles of β-carotene (odds ratio [OR] for quintile 5 vs. 1:0.33; 95% CI: 0.19–0.59; P for trend = 0.010) and β-cryptoxanthin intake (OR for quintile 5 vs. 1:0.61; 95% CI: 0.39–0.97; P for trend = 0.037) were associated with reduced risk of osteoporosis. Similar and marginally significant results for lutein + zeaxanthin intake was found (OR for quintile 5 vs. 1:0.53; 95% CI: 0.30–0.94; P for trend = 0.076). There was no association of α-carotene and lycopene intake with osteoporosis. These associations did not differ by sex (all P_interaction > 0.05).

Conclusions

Higher β-carotene and β-cryptoxanthin intake was associated with decreased osteoporosis risk. A very high intake of lutein + zeaxanthin was also associated with lower risk of osteoporosis.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Funding

This study was supported by a research grant from the Jilin Scientific and Technological Development Program (Grant Number: 20210101431JC).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, China

    Bo Kan

  2. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, 232-1163 Xinmin Street, Jilin, 130021, Changchun, China

    Dingjie Guo, Qianqian Zhao, Binbin Li, Lijie Feng, Fengyi Huang, Na Wang, Xue Shen & Shuman Yang

  3. Department of Orthopaedics, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, China

    Baoming Yuan

  4. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, USA

    Ann M. Vuong

  5. Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

    Depeng Jiang

  6. FAW General Hospital of Jilin Province, Changchun City, Jilin, China

    Mengmeng Zhang & Haitao Cheng

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  1. Bo Kan
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Correspondence to Shuman Yang.

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Kan, B., Guo, D., Yuan, B. et al. Dietary carotenoid intake and osteoporosis: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2005–2018. Arch Osteoporos 17, 2 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11657-021-01047-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11657-021-01047-9

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