Carrot Compound May Reduce Hip Fracture Risk

Plant carotenoids are a primary source of provitamin A, and previous research suggests that people who consume diets rich in carotenoids may have a lower mortality from chronic diseases.  Food sources of carotenoids include carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, kale, collard greens, papaya, bell peppers, and tomatoes.  Researchers from the National University of Singapore (Singapore) analyzed data collected from 63,257 men and women enrolled in the Singapore Chinese Health Study. The team identified a total of 1,630 incident hip fractures.  Analysis revealed that in the men, hip fracture risk decreased with increasing intakes of total vegetables, and of total carotenoids – particularly beta carotene.  As well, in that low body mass index (BMI) was found to be a strong risk factor for hip fracture risk among the male subjects, the researchers observed that the protective effect of carotenoid consumption was higher in lean men than in men with higher BMI.