LifePak Elements

Across eight observational studies, higher circulating lycopene was associated with lower carotid artery wall thickness, a marker of subclinical atherosclerosis; beta-carotene showed only a marginal association and the link was stronger in men.

Cavero-Redondo I, Saz-Lara A, Saz-Lara AD, Martínez-Cifuentes Ó, Otero-Luis I, González-Collado A, Rey-López JP. — Nutrients

Pooling randomized trials, this meta-analysis found dietary supplements including carotenoids and collagen peptides associated with small but measurable improvements in skin photoaging markers.

Study authors per publication — Frontiers in Medicine

This systematic review describes how carotenoids protect aging skin through antioxidant action, support of hydration and elasticity via aquaporin and hyaluronic-acid pathways, and modulation of mitochondrial function, highlighting their potential in preventive dermatology.

Stanescu C, Chiscop I, Mihalache D, Popa F, Tamas C, Stoleriu G. — Nutrients

This systematic review concludes carotenoids support skin structure and antioxidant defense through several overlapping mechanisms, while cautioning that clinical effect sizes vary by study and carotenoid type.

Study authors per publication — Nutrients

This review explains hypercarotenemia -- harmlessly elevated blood carotenoids causing yellow-orange skin with clear whites of the eyes -- distinguishing it from jaundice and framing it as a benign biomarker of carotenoid intake and beta-carotene-conversion genetics.

Wang Z, Xu J, Xu G, Sha Y, Wang K, Chen G. — Cureus

This review connects the skin's natural antioxidant network, including carotenoids, to its capacity for neutralizing reactive oxygen species generated by UV and environmental exposure.

Study authors per publication — Dermatology/biochemistry journal

This review surveys current antioxidant strategies, including dietary carotenoids, studied for supporting skin structure and countering environmental oxidative stress.

Study authors per publication — Applied Sciences

In school-aged children, noninvasive skin carotenoid readings correlated significantly with blood serum carotenoids, supporting reflection spectroscopy as a valid, needle-free way to assess carotenoid status in pediatric populations.

Liu R, Rosok LM, Black M, Erdman JW, Khan NA. — The Journal of nutrition

A review found that phytochemicals such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and carotenoids act as redox modulators affecting cellular signaling and inflammation, mechanisms studied for relevance to chronic diseases including cardiovascular and neurodegenerative conditions.

Singh DD; Yadav DK; Shin D — Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)

A validation study found noninvasive skin carotenoid readings by reflection spectroscopy correlated strongly with total plasma carotenoids, supporting their use as a valid biomarker of fruit-and-vegetable carotenoid intake, provided body composition is accounted for.

Kiem F, Lackner S, Meier-Allard N, Schimpel C, Mörkl S, Unterweger T, Gruber J, Strobl H, Holasek S. — Food science & nutrition

An international survey of uveitis specialists found persistent variability in diagnostic and management practices for retinal vasculitis, with most agreeing on a definition involving vascular abnormalities and intraocular inflammation.

Liu R; Cifuentes-González C; Gangaputra S; Putera I; Rojas-Carabali W; La Distia Nora R; de-la-Torre A; Gupta V; Rosenbaum JT; Agrawal R; ReViSe -- IUSG Study Group — Ocular immunology and inflammation

Using genetic (Mendelian randomization) methods, this study found no consistent causal link between higher circulating dietary antioxidants, including beta-carotene, and better lung function, even in people exposed to smoke or air pollution.

Saied A, Horsfall LJ. — Canadian respiratory journal

A study of 49 patients with CFAP410 gene variants found a range of ciliopathy phenotypes including early-onset vision loss with a cone-rod dystrophy pattern, and a minority also showed skeletal abnormalities consistent with a specific spondylometaphyseal dysplasia.

Schmidt RE; Pohodich AE; Birch D; Jones K; Lam BL; Jung EH; Jain N; Georgiou M; Mahroo OA; Webster AR; Michaelides M; Bakall B; Iannaccone A; Vincent A; Parameswarappa DC; Heon E; Scholl HPN; Janeschitz-Kriegl L; Traboulsi EI; Zein W; Brooks BP; Cukras C; Hufnagel R; Aleman TS; Sylla MM; Tsang SH; Alabek M; Sahel J; Gorin MB; van Genderen MM; Stingl K; Reith M; Kohl S; Amaral RAS; Sallum JMF; Vincent AL; Hull S; Duncan JL; Hanson JVM; Tedeus M; Maggi J; Graf U; Koller S; Berger W; Gerth-Kahlert C; Marra M; Everett LA; Yang P; Pennesi ME — NPJ genomic medicine

In northern-Chinese mothers, carotenoids transferred into breast milk shifted over lactation -- beta-carotene predominated in colostrum and lutein in mature milk -- and milk levels partly tracked mothers' dietary carotenoid intake.

Tian L, Wang L, Li F, Sun A, Ni M, Sun H, Wang H, Li X, Zhao Y, Zhang L, Li X, Kuchan M, Mao Y, Chen J. — Food & function

Researchers identified homozygous DHRS3 gene variants, which normally limit excess retinoic acid synthesis by converting retinaldehyde to retinol, in patients with a consistent pattern of craniosynostosis, facial differences, congenital heart disease, and scoliosis.

Hashimoto AS; Yu J; Williams C; Gaudenz K; Varshosaz P; Zhao R; Pilli N; Liu T; Russell J; Tooze RS; Twigg SRF; Banka S; Sweeney E; McGowan SJ; Knight SJL; Taylor JC; Froukh TJ; Palafoll MIV; Martínez-Gil N; Costa-Roger M; Villarreal-Molina MT; Lieberman Hernandez E; Abou Jamra R; Gattermann F; Koch-Hogrebe M; Wieczorek D; Trainor PA; Moise AR; Wilkie AOM; Kane MA — Genetics in medicine open

In adults over 50, higher dietary lutein and zeaxanthin intake was associated with lower odds of vertebral fracture, and beta-carotene with lower fracture odds in women, suggesting carotenoid-rich diets may support bone -- an association, not proof of cause.

Zheng Y, Zhou W, Zhang J, Lan T, Zhang R. — Archives of osteoporosis

This review synthesizes cellular and molecular mechanisms behind age-related macular degeneration, including oxidative stress, inflammation, and lipid dysregulation converging on the retinal pigment epithelium in both dry and wet AMD subtypes.

Jiang F; Ma J; Lei C; Zhang Y; Zhang M — International journal of molecular sciences

In a mother-child cohort, prenatal carotenoid levels showed no overall link to childhood lung function, but higher carotenoids were associated with better FEV1 specifically among children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy.

Zhang X, Hartman TJ, Adgent M, Moore P, Gebretsadik T, Nickelberry M, LeWinn KZ, Zhao Q, Carroll KN, Wright RJ. — Thorax

Spatial gene-mapping in mouse retinas exposed to light stress found a localized superior region driving inflammatory and angiogenic gene changes linked to age-related macular degeneration, pointing to new retinal repair targets.

Schumann U; Liu L; Aggio-Bruce R; Cioanca AV; Shariev A; Madigan MC; Valter K; Wen J; Natoli R — Communications biology

An expert review on Vitamin C found that ten studies were identified, which administered different liposomal formulations, vitamin C doses (0.15-10 g) and sample collection durations (4-24 h).

Carr AC — Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology

A review found that topical L-ascorbic acid acts as an antioxidant, collagen synthesis cofactor, and tyrosinase inhibitor, with clinical studies showing effectiveness in preventing photoaging, reducing wrinkles, and mitigating hyperpigmentation.

Badash A; Garibay A; Petronic-Rosic V — Clinics in dermatology

Review describes how ascorbate enhances quinone redox cycling to generate reactive oxygen species, proposed as a strategy to selectively exploit compromised antioxidant defenses in cancer cells.

Glorieux C; Enriquez-Lara C; Valderrama JA; Benites J; Calderon PB — Redox biology

A review found that vitamin C in fruits and vegetables acts as an antioxidant cofactor supporting immune regulation, collagen synthesis, and iron absorption, though its content is highly sensitive to processing and storage conditions.

Verma K; Nema PK; Badgujar PC; Venkatesh K; Rajendran A; Loushigam GL — Food chemistry

A systematic review of 194 studies found topical and oral glutathione improved skin pigmentation, brightness, hydration, and oxidative stress markers, while injectable glutathione raised systemic levels quickly but with more safety concerns.

Stanescu C; Chiscop I; Boev M; Stanescu GD; Matei MN — Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)