# Carotenoid Supplementation During Pregnancy: Ocular and Systemic Effects

> **NIH NIH R21** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2020 · $190,625

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Prenatal vitamin and micronutrient supplementation is standard-of-care for pregnant women worldwide;
however, with the exception of a few ingredients, most prenatal supplementation guidelines are not yet
supported by substantial prospective clinical research. Recently, prenatal supplements with added lutein and
zeaxanthin have entered the American market with the stated intentions of enhancing infant visual and neural
development. Although clinical trials were never performed to support this contention, it is physiologically
plausible from the neonate's perspective because these dietary carotenoids are selectively concentrated in
human ocular and neural tissue in utero, especially during the third trimester of pregnancy, and there is
increasing evidence that lutein and zeaxanthin not only protect against macular degeneration in the elderly, but
they may also function to enhance contrast sensitivity, decrease glare disability, and increase visual acuity and
cognition throughout life. The macular carotenoid pigment is detectable at birth, and levels increase with age
at a time when they can contribute to visual function and foveal development. From the mother's perspective,
the last trimester of pregnancy is a time when she must transfer some of her carotenoid stores to the
developing infant, potentially putting her at risk for depletion systemically and in her ocular tissues.
Because of the importance to the long-term health of both mothers and their infants, a randomized, controlled
study using state-of-the-art quantitative assessment tools is indicated; however, before embarking on a
potentially very large multi-center clinical trial, it is appropriate to conduct a smaller-scale pilot study to explore
the feasibility of recruitment and retention and to develop the information to properly power future studies.
Currently, all available data on the role of carotenoids in prenatal health are cross-sectional or observational,
The proposed study is designed to test the hypotheses that: [a] the third trimester of pregnancy is indeed a
period of maternal systemic and ocular carotenoid depletion; [b] prenatal supplementation with commercially
available prenatal supplements containing lutein and zeaxanthin will counteract this reduction; [c] the
enhanced maternal carotenoid status associated with prenatal carotenoid supplementation will increase
systemic carotenoid levels and macular pigment in their newborn infants.
This R21 study will provide necessary preliminary data to design and power future, larger-scale prospective
clinical trials with further optimized formulations to determine whether prenatal and postnatal carotenoid
supplementation can have beneficial effects on maternal visual function and on infant visual and cognitive
development in normal and high-risk pregnancies. The results may also provide evidence-based support to
guide policy decisions about prenatal nutritional recommendations to enhance maternal and infant ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9920147
- **Project number:** 5R21EY029857-02
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** PAUL STEVEN BERNSTEIN
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $190,625
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-05-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9920147

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9920147, Carotenoid Supplementation During Pregnancy: Ocular and Systemic Effects (5R21EY029857-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9920147. Licensed CC0.

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