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LUTEIN IN COMPANION ANIMAL NUTRITION

First broadcast on www.provet.co.uk  


This information is provided by Provet for educational purposes only.

You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

 

What is lutein ?

Lutein (also known as xanthophyll) is one of a large group of over 600 compounds known as the carotenoid pigments.. These pigments give yellow, green or orange colouration to vegetables and fruits and they are precursors for Vitamin A. Lutein is naturally found in several plants including some flowers (eg marigolds), red peppers, kale, mustard and spinach. It is also found in egg yolk. 

In the eye lutein is found in the macula which lies in front of the cones in the retina, where it is believed to act as a yellow filter. Dietary lutein is thought to be an essential micronutrient for normal vision, and being fat-soluble deficiency may occur if fat digestion and absorption is impaired. Lutein supplementation may be beneficial in the management of macular degeneration which leads to a loss of central vision and colour vision.

In mice, cats and dogs (Kim 2000)  lutein has been shown to stimulate both cell-mediated and humoral immune responses. In cats immune stimulating effects were noticed at dose levels of 0.7mg/kg body weight/day and higher.

The European Food Safety Authirty (EFSA) have concluded that further work is needed to established safe daily allowances for humans

References

Kim HW et al (2000) Vet Immunol Immunopathol 74 (3-4): 315-327 (dogs)

Kim HW et al (2000) Vet Immunol Immunopathol 73 (3-4) 331-341

Updated October 2013