Kemin Industries recently presented the findings of a new clinical study that found that FloraGLO lutein boosted macular pigment levels in children and adolescents at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) in May. The study abstract will be released in July.

According to the company, a daily dose of 5 mg of the lutein ingredient in healthy adolescents was associated with significant increases in macular pigment levels, potentially helping to protect eyes from digital strain due to screentime.

While lutein has been studied extensively for its eye and brain health benefits in adults, few studies have demonstrated benefits in adolescents, nor have any studies explored the effects of a dose as low as 5 mg.

In the present study, 59 healthy children between the ages of 8 and 16 who received at least four hours of screen time per day were randomized to take either 5 mg of FloraGLO lutein, which also contains 225 nanograms of zeaxanthin, or placebo gummies daily for six months.

On days 0, 90, and 180, macular pigment was assessed using two non-invasive techniques: heterochromatic flicker photometry (HFP) for peak macular pigment optical density, and Haidinger’s Brush degree of polarization detection (HB) for macular pigment volume.

The HB method recorded a 14% average increase in macular pigment density in the FloraGLO group compared to placebo, while the HFP method only showed a 0.5% increase associated with lutein supplementation, suggesting that macular pigment accumulation in pre-teens and adolescents may differ from patterns observed in adulthood.

“This study underscores a powerful insight: just five milligrams of lutein a day—roughly the amount found in one-quarter cup of cooked spinach—can meaningfully support eye health in pre-teens and teens exposed to digital screens all day long,” said Brenda Fonseca, PhD, senior scientist at Kemin Human Nutrition and Health and principal investigator of the study. “That’s a small nutritional change with potentially big implications, especially considering most kids aren’t coming close to that intake level on a daily basis. As screen time continues to climb, we’re encouraged to see that targeted nutrition like this could help counteract some of the strain today’s digital lifestyles are placing on young eyes.”