Genetically modified rice a good vitamin A source
Genetically modified rice could be a good source of vitamin A for children in countries where deficiency in the vitamin is common, a new study suggests.
The study tested so-called Golden Rice against both spinach and supplements in providing vitamin A to 68 six- to eight-year-olds in China.
Researchers found that the rice was as effective as the capsules in giving kids a boost of vitamin A, based on blood tests taken over three weeks.
And it worked better than the natural beta-carotene in spinach, the researchers report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Normally, rice plants produce beta-carotene – a precursor to vitamin A – in their green parts, but not the grain that people eat. Golden Rice is genetically engineered to produce beta-carotene in the edible part of the plant.
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