Comparison of plasma biomarkers with dietary assessment methods for fruit and vegetable intake
- 24 July 2003
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Nature in European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Vol. 57 (8) , 988-998
- https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601634
Abstract
Objective: To assess the variability and validity of plasma-based biomarkers of antioxidant vitamin, and fruit and vegetable intake. Setting: Leeds, Wakefield, Huddersfield and Bradford, England. Subjects: A total of 54 free-living, nonsmoking women recruited from participants of the UK Women's Cohort Study (UKWCS). Methods: Two fasting blood samples were taken at two time points, 18 months apart. A 4-day food diary was completed prior to the first blood sample and a 24-h recall was conducted at the time of the second blood collection. All blood samples were analysed for ascorbic acid and four carotenoids. Associations between antioxidant vitamin intake from all food sources and supplements, as well as fruit and vegetable intake, and plasma levels of the antioxidant vitamins were assessed. Results: Using the 4-day diary, positive associations were found between micronutrient intake from all food sources and plasma concentrations of ascorbic acid (P-carotene (P-carotene are good indicators of previous vitamin C and -carotene intake, from all food sources. However, caution is required in extrapolating these results to include individual food groups, rich in these vitamins. The results imply that the practice of using plasma biomarkers simply as a proxy measure of dietary intake is not valid and emphasise that plasma biomarkers are not simply a reflection of dietary intake, but also of a number of physiological processes. Biomarkers in nutrition epidemiological studies are however useful to measure nutrient status at the tissue level.Keywords
This publication has 21 references indexed in Scilit:
- Lifestyle factors affecting fruit and vegetable consumption in the UK Women's Cohort StudyAppetite, 2001
- Carotenoids in young and elderly healthy humans: dietary intakes, biochemical status and diet-plasma relationshipsEuropean Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999
- Bioavailability of lutein from vegetables is 5 times higher than that of β-caroteneThe American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999
- Plasma vitamin C: what does it measure?Public Health Nutrition, 1999
- BIOAVAILABILITY AND BIOCONVERSION OF CAROTENOIDSAnnual Review of Nutrition, 1998
- 7. Biochemical markers of nutrient intakePublished by Oxford University Press (OUP) ,1997
- The effects of vitamin C supplementation on biomarkers of oxygen radical generated damage in human volunteers with “low” or “high” cholesterol levelsEnvironmental and Molecular Mutagenesis, 1997
- Carotenoid content of fruits and vegetables: An evaluation of analytic dataJournal of the American Dietetic Association, 1993
- The development and application of a carotenoid database for fruits, vegetables, and selected multicomponent foodsJournal of the American Dietetic Association, 1993
- STATISTICAL METHODS FOR ASSESSING AGREEMENT BETWEEN TWO METHODS OF CLINICAL MEASUREMENTThe Lancet, 1986