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If you’re wondering; what is lutein used for, you’ve come to the right place. Until recently, its most common use was as a natural coloring. It would be added to foods to impart colors ranging form yellow to orange-red, depending on the amount that was added. It imparts these colors, because it absorbs blue light.

It was also used to fortify chicken feed. A chicken’s skin is not naturally yellow, unless it eats lutein-fortified feed. A fortified diet, of this kind, also results in eggs that have a darker yellow, nearly orange, yolk. The lutein that is present in eggs is a result of chicken’s eating fortified feed. Chickens do not naturally produce it. It is produced primarily by plants.

As long as fruits and vegetables are consumed, it is a nutrient included in the human diet. It is just one of the reasons that eating fruits and vegetables (other than white potatoes) is so important.

If you are wondering; what is lutein doing in nutritional supplements, the answer has mostly to do with the eyes. Inside of the eye is the retina. Light receptors called rods and cones are found in the retina. These are nerve cells responsible for transmitting signals to the brain and receiving signals from it.

Each of the rods and cones contains a membrane composed of protein and retinal or Vitamin A. Vitamin A deficiencies can cause blindness, but a more common problem, night blindness, is due to a lack of it in the diet.

Another component of the retina is the omega3 fatty acid called DHA. It is the most abundant fatty acid found in the retina, as it is in all nerve and brain cells.

Within the retina is found the macula, a spot in the back of the eye, responsible for central vision. A high concentration of lutein, along with zeaxanthin, is found in the macula. If you were wondering what is lutein, because you have seen it in a health supplement, zeaxanthin was probably another ingredient. Zeaxanthin is the dominant pigment in the central macula. Lutein dominates in the rest of the macula.

Both are members of the carotenoid family of pigments. Beta-carotene and lycopene are also carotenoids. Beta-carotene is converted within the body to vitamin A.

At one time it was believed that only beta-carotene was important to healthy vision. Now, it appears that the other carotenoids are just as important. If you ate a salad containing spinach, broccoli, romaine lettuce, carrots and tomatoes, you would get a mixture of all of the carotenoids. If you took a health supplement, you might only get beta-carotene. You would have to read the label to be sure.

You could be wondering what is lutein because your eye doctor suggested it as a dietary supplement. You may be at risk of macula degeneration, an age related eye disease that can result in partial or total blindness. It is believed that supplements containing a variety of carotenoids, along with other vitamins and minerals may reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration. That covers what is lutein. Maybe you should learn about the other nutrients that are important to good vision, for life.

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