Project Number: 5306-51530-018-01
Project Type: General Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Feb 15, 2009
End Date: Jun 30, 2012

Objective:
ß-cryptoxanthin (CX) is a provitamin A carotenoid abundant in mandarin oranges. Supplementation with foods rich in CX may be an efficacious dietary intervention for improving breast milk vitamin A. Our objective is to assess the impact of daily supplementation with food sources of CX or beta-carotene (BC) on the plasma and breast milk concentrations of CX, BC and vitamin A in Bangladeshi women with marginal vitamin A status.

Approach:
Exclusively breastfeeding Bangladeshi women with low vitamin A stores will be randomly assigned to receive a vitamin A supplement, 6 d/week, for 3 weeks, as either 1) mandarin oranges (containing 6 mg CX), 2) orange sweet potatoes (6 mg of BC), 3) retinyl palmitate (0.5 mg vitamin A), and 4) a low provitamin A vegetable (white potato). Concentrations of CX, BC and vitamin A will be measured at baseline, and weekly in breast milk, and at baseline and after 3 weeks in plasma. This study will provide important new information on 1) the relative absorption of CX and BC (plasma responses), 2) the relative transfer of CX and BC to breast milk (breast milk responses), and 3) the relative potential of CX and BC to form vitamin A (breast milk retinol responses).