Scientists made a new way to measure how well kids absorb vitamin A from pumpkin or spinach by testing their poop — no needles needed!

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Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

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Community contributions welcome

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Extraction of carotenoids from feces, enabling the bioavailability of beta-carotene to be studied in Indonesian children.

Cross-Sectional Study

Human

2003 Aug 13

The study developed a way to measure how well kids absorb beta-carotene from pumpkin and spinach by testing their poop, which matches exactly what the claim says.

Contradicting (0)

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No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

Extraction of carotenoids from feces, enabling the bioavailability of beta-carotene to be studied in Indonesian children.

Score: 33

DOI: 10.1021/JF0300240

Similar Assertions

In Indonesian kids, pumpkin gives the body about 1.8 times more vitamin A (from beta-carotene) than spinach does, but some kids get way more and others way less — it really varies from person to person.

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Kids absorb beta-carotene from pumpkin and spinach differently, and poop tests show almost the same difference as blood tests—so maybe we can use poop instead of blood to check nutrition without needing a needle.

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80%

If young, healthy adults eat raw carrots or drink fresh carrot juice with a little canola oil, their bodies absorb the beta-carotene quickly—peaking in the blood in just 1.5 hours—and it’s all cleared out within 24 hours.

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