Assessment of individual carotenoid and vitamin A dietary intake in overweight and obese Dominican subjects.

INTRODUCTION
Carotenoids are plant pigment with important biological activities in humans, such as provitamin-A among others. At present, there are no individual carotenoid intake data in the Dominican population, which is at risk of vitamin A deficiency and has an important percentage of overweight and obese individuals .

OBJECTIVE
To assess the individual components of vitamin A intake (retinol, α-carotene, β-carotene and β-cryptoxanthin) and that of other relevant dietary carotenoids like lutein, zeaxanthin and lycopene of Dominican daily food intake.

METHODS
Fifty overweigth and obese subjects (22-69 y). Individual carotenoid intake, from whole diet and from the ingestion of fruits and vegetables, was determined using three 24 h diet recalls and a specific carotenoid database. Retinol, macronutrient and energy intake were calculated using DIAL® software.

RESULTS
The total carotenoid intake was 6363.2 µg/day, 56. 1% corresponding to provitamin A carotenoids (74.3% β-carotene). Vitamin A intake was supplied by retinol (40%) and by provitamin A carotenoids (60%); vegetables contributed more than fruits (39.2% and 19.2%, respectively). Non-provitamin A carotenoid intake represents 43.9% of the total intake and is supplied by lycopene and lutein plus zeaxanthin in similar percentages (52.3% and 47.7%, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS
The diet of these Dominican subjets met the recommended vitamin A intake, when expressed as retinol equivalents, 59% of which was supplied by provitamin-A carotenoids from plant sources, mainly by red/orange and white/yellow foods. Individual carotenoid intake is an aspect of great interest for issuing dietary recommendations in the public health setting.