Table 2.

Pairwise Comparisons for Mean Treatment Effects of Carotenoid Concentrations Over Time Between MCS and Placebo Groups

Carotenoid	MCS (n = 8)			Placebo (n = 9)			Mean Difference	P Value a
	0 mo	3 wk	6 mo	0 mo	3 wk	6 mo
α-Carotene	0.041 ± 0.013	0.137 ± 0.019	0.111 ± 0.015	0.030 ± 0.012	0.037 ± 0.018	0.020 ± 0.014	1.018 ± 0.144	<0.001b
β-Carotene	0.127 ± 0.024	0.221 ± 0.025	0.224 ± 0.024	0.116 ± 0.019	0.127 ± 0.024	0.107 ± 0.023	0.288 ± 0.049	<0.001b
β-Cryptoxanthin	0.070 ± 0.015	0.062 ± 0.011	0.093 ± 0.029	0.057 ± 0.014	0.048 ± 0.010	0.061 ± 0.027	0.129 ± 0.118	0.297b
Lycopene	0.185 ± 0.049	0.262 ± 0.025	0.239 ± 0.045	0.194 ± 0.046	0.186 ± 0.024	0.227 ± 0.035	0.101 ± 0.072	0.185
Lutein	0.094 ± 0.012	0.423 ± 0.052	0.280 ± 0.055	0.083 ± 0.011	0.078 ± 0.049	0.089 ± 0.051	0.242 ± 0.052	0.001
Zeaxanthin	0.040 ± 0.005	0.122 ± 0.009	0.099 ± 0.016	0.032 ± 0.005	0.030 ± 0.008	0.034 ± 0.015	0.070 ± 0.010	<0.001
Retinol	0.351 ± 0.039	0.274 ± 0.016	0.281 ± 0.023	0.365 ± 0.036	0.346 ± 0.015	0.373 ± 0.022	-0.076 ± 0.015	<0.001

All values presented as estimated marginal means ± standard error of the mean (μg/mL) adjusted for baseline levels, Tanner stage, and BMI z-score.

^aBonferroni adjusted P value for treatment effects between MCS vs placebo.

^bLog-transformed values.