Lutein, a member of the carotene family, can be found naturally in foods. However, many people either do not get enough or have some form of deficiency. It can be found in leafy green vegetables such as dark lettuce or spinach. It can also be found in egg yolks. It is the carotenes in the yolk that make it the yellow color that it is. Also, corn is an excellent source of lutein. However, again, just because you may eat these foods, you may not get the proper amount because of how little you are eating or not the right type.

First and foremost, lutein is a powerful antioxidant. If you are not getting enough from your food sources then your body will not have enough to work as an antioxidant. This is why many people are choosing to supplement their diets with lutein to make sure that you are protecting your body from free radicals that enter the body. Lutein also has some other benefits. It can help significantly with the eyes as most beta carotenes can. This is especially the case when you mix both lutein and xeaxanthin together because the xeaxanthin can boost the effect of lutein on your vision and can keep your eyes healthy. Recent studies have shown that lutein may have an effect on your cardiovascular system, although it may be too early to claim that. Lastly, lutein is great for the skin, mostly because of the antioxidant properties that it has.

Because it is something that your body natural produces, there are no side effects from taking a supplement as long as you follow the correct dosage. If you consistently overdose you can get a build up of lutein which can actually be harmful to your body, but this is very rare. So, if you don’t eat enough lutein foods and want to promote good eye health as well as a general wellbeing then taking a lutein supplement can be very beneficial to your body.