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Lutein, an antioxidant nutrient already linked to eye health, may help prevent the hardening and narrowing of arteries that can lead to heart attack and stroke, according to a new report.

Lutein has already been shown to potentially lower the risk of an age-related vision loss called macular degeneration, possibly by preventing oxidative damage to the retina.

In a study of 480 middle-aged men and women, California researchers found that those with the highest blood levels of lutein showed the least thickening in their artery walls over 18 months.

In the new research, investigators studied lutein's relationship to thickening in the neck's carotid arteries, a marker of artery disease throughout the body. They found that while participants with the highest blood levels of lutein showed virtually no artery-wall thickening at the end of the study, those with the lowest lutein levels showed increased artery thickness. The lutein link held after factors including age, smoking, use of heart medications and intake of other vitamins were considered.

Researchers also conducted experiments in mice and cell cultures. They found that treating artery-wall cells with lutein reduced the oxidation of LDL cholesterol. And in mice engineered to develop artery disease, the researchers found that those given lutein-supplemented diets showed significantly smaller artery-clogging plaques compared with untreated mice.

Thus the researchers conclude that lutein may be a ``potent protective factor'' against artery disease progression as reported in the Circulation (2001;103).