Effect of the consumption of a fruit and vegetable soup with high in vitro carotenoid accessibility on serum carotenoid concentrations and markers of oxidative stress in young men

AimTo evaluate the effect of the daily intake of a fruit & vegetable soup with high in vitro bioaccessibility of carotenoids on β-carotene and lycopene serum concentrations.MethodsFourteen healthy young men (24 \ub1 1 years) received 300 mL/day of a carrot, tomato, and broccoli soup, containing 3.9 mg β-carotene and 4 mg lycopene, for 4 weeks followed by a 4-week washout period. The serum carotenoid response and oxidative markers were analyzed after 3 and 4 weeks of soup consumption and after a 4-week washout.ResultsThe in vitro bioaccessibility of β-carotene and lycopene was 55 and 43%, respectively, in the soup. Serum β-carotene concentrations were significantly higher than baseline (0.33 \ub1 0.05 μmol/L) after 3 weeks (0.69 \ub1 0.06 μmol/L) and 4 weeks (0.78 \ub1 0.10 μmol/L) of soup consumption (