Carotene
Did you know that nearly all of the carotene sold as "natural"
in supplements is manufactured by a drug company, in a chemical factory,
and made from petroleum byproducts, processed with an industrial solvent
banned in other countries because it is so carcinogenic?
Exsula uses only living plant sources of Carotenes - and only in their
full-life-spectrum, providing dozens of different Carotenoids in their
genuinely natural form.
Beta-carotene is probably the best known of the carotenoids, those red,
orange, and yellow pigments that give color to many fruits and vegetables.
The body converts beta-carotene into vitamin A, a nutrient first identified
in the 1930s and now recognized as vital to the growth and development
of the human body. As a potent immune-system booster and a powerful antioxidant,
it counters the effects of cell-damaging molecules called free-radicals,
beta-carotene has an important role to play in human health.
Consuming plenty of fruits and vegetables is an excellent way to supply
your body with beta-carotene. Scientists have long hoped that supplements
could provide concentrated sources of beta-carotene and thus provide increased
protection against heart disease and even against certain cancers. Recent
findings, however, indicate that single, high-dose beta-carotene supplements
may actually do more harm than good, possibly increasing (rather than
decreasing) the number of cell-damaging free-radicals in the body. It's
wise to get beta-carotene in supplement form only as part of a mixed complex,
along with other health-promoting carotenoids, combining beta-carotene
with other carotenes such as alpha-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin,
and cryptoxanthin.
Beta Carotene Benefits
In addition to the numerous studies on beta-carotene's effectiveness
for heart disease and cancer, researchers have been exploring the nutrient's
potential for treating chronic fatigue syndrome, Alzheimer's disease,
fibromyalgia, male infertility, and psoriasis. Interestingly, low levels
of beta-carotene and other antioxidants have been linked to the development
of cataracts, a clouding of the eye's lens that impairs vision. Preliminary
studies point to a possible connection between too little beta-carotene
(along with low levels of vitamins A and E) and subsequent development
of lupus, an autoimmune disorder.
Beta-carotene, when taken in a comprehensive antioxidant program may
help to:
Guard against heart disease. Beta-carotene may have
a role to play in staving off heart disease, apparently a function of
its ability to keep harmful LDL cholesterol from damaging the heart and
coronary arteries. In a preliminary study done in 1982 of more than 300
doctors taking part in the Harvard University Physicians' Health Study,
researchers found that ingesting 50 mg (85,000 IU) of beta-carotene daily
cut in half the subsequent risk of risk of heart attack or stroke, or
death from cardiovascular disease.
However, subsequent studies using beta-carotene alone and involving
larger numbers of participants were not able to duplicate these results.
It's possible that to directly benefit the heart, beta-carotene must
be taken along with other antioxidants. Or it must be consumed through
vegetables or fruits; these plant foods provide antioxidants, dietary
fiber, folate, and a host of other heart-healthy compounds that have yet
to be fully understood.
Interestingly, in a follow-up to the Harvard study published in 2001
and involving more than 15,000 male physicians, investigators found that
a high intake of vegetables rich in beta-carotene made a big difference
on heart health. Participants who consumed at least two and a half servings
of vegetables a day over the 12-year study were far less likely to develop
coronary heart disease than those who consumed less than one vegetable
serving a day.
Prevent certain cancers. Beta-carotene's antioxidant
actions make it valuable in protecting against, and in some cases even
reversing, precancerous conditions affecting the breast, mucous membranes,
throat, mouth, stomach, prostate, colon, cervix, and bladder.
To provide anticancer actions, however, beta-carotene must be taken
as part of an antioxidant supplement formula featuring other carotenoids,
vitamins C and E, and selenium. In fact, large studies indicate that beta-carotene
taken as a single supplement offers no cancer-protective actions at all.
To confuse matters, an increased risk for lung cancer has actually been
linked to beta-carotene supplements in smokers. In one highly publicized
study, researchers in Finland found that more cases of lung cancer developed
in male smokers (including former smokers) who were taking high doses
of the supplement, particularly those who smoked 20 cigarettes or more
a day.
Several factors were considered responsible for this finding. Smokers
typically have low levels of vitamin C, for example, which--when combined
with an excess of beta-carotene--creates an imbalance that may result
in an increase (rather than decrease) in the formation of cell-damaging
free radicals.
In treating cancer with chemotherapy or radiation, both of which can
damage healthy cells as they attack cancer cells, beta-carotene taken
with other carotenoids, such as lycopene, and antioxidants such as vitamins
C and E, may help to protect the body.
Recommended Intake
No RDA has yet been established for beta-carotene, but about 10,000
IU of this nutrient fulfills the RDA for vitamin A.
If You Get Too Little
Symptoms of a beta-carotene deficiency mimic those of a vitamin A deficiency:
dry skin, night blindness, susceptibility to infection. Such deficiencies
are seldom seen, however, even in people who don't eat fruits or vegetables
or take supplements, because so many other foods supply the nutrient.
If You Get Too Much
It is nearly impossible to overdose on beta-carotene because the body
excretes what it doesn't need. However, if you ingest high levels
of beta-carotene from foods (such as carrot juice) or supplements, the
palms of your hands and the soles of your feet may turn orange. The coloration
is harmless and will gradually fade if you reduce your beta-carotene intake.
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