BACKGROUND
Lutein and zeaxanthin are carotenoids associated with better cognition in older adults. Recent evidence suggest that their dietary intake may also have cognitive implications in childhood.
OBJECTIVES
To examine associations of early childhood lutein and zeaxanthin (L/Z) intake with cognition in early and mid-childhood.
METHODS
Among 1378 children in Project Viva, a prospective cohort, mothers reported their child's dietary intake in early childhood (median 3.2 years) using a food frequency questionnaire. Child cognition and behavior were assessed at the same timepoint using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT-III) and the Wide Range Assessment of Visual Motor Abilities (WRAVMA); and at mid-childhood (median 7.7 years) using the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, the WRAVMA drawing subtest, the Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning, the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire.
RESULTS
Children consumed a daily mean (SD) of 1.0 (0.4) mg of L/Z in early childhood. Children in the third quartile category of L/Z intake had a mean PPVT-III score 2.40 (95%CI: 0.27, 4.53) points higher than children in the lowest quartile category in early childhood, suggesting better receptive vocabulary. Children in the highest quartile category of L/Z intake had a parent-reported mean BRIEF Global Executive Composite score 1.65 (95%CI: -3.27, -0.03) points lower than children in the lowest quartile category in mid-childhood, indicating better executive function. We did not observe associations between L/Z intake and any of the other cognitive or behavioral outcomes assessed.
CONCLUSION
The overall findings do not provide strong evidence of an association between child L/Z intake and cognition and behavior. However, the positive associations found between early childhood L/Z intake and early childhood receptive vocabulary and mid-childhood executive function, in addition to previous evidence of neurodevelopmental benefit of L/Z intake, suggest that this relationship deserves further investigation.