@article{2989202,
    title = "Variations in plasma phytoestrogen concentrations in European adults",
    author = "Peeters, P.H.M. and Slimani, N. and Van Der Schouw, Y.T. and Grace, P.B. and Navarro, C. and Tjonneland, A. and Olsen, A. and Clavel-Chapelon, F. and Touillaud, M. and Boutron-Ruault, M.-C. and Jenab, M. and Kaaks, R. and Linseisen, J. and Trichopoulou, A. and Trichopoulos, D. and Dilis, V. and Boeing, H. and Weikert, C. and Overvad, K. and Pala, V. and Palli, D. and Panico, S. and Tumino, R. and Vineis, P. and Bueno-de-Mesquita, H.B. and Van Gils, C.H. and Skeie, G. and Jakszyn, P. and Hallmans, G. and Berglund, G. and Key, T.J. and Travis, R. and Riboli, E. and Bingham, S.A.",
    journal = "Malaysian Journal of Nutrition",
    year = "2007",
    volume = "137",
    number = "5",
    pages = "1294-1300",
    publisher = "American Institute of Nutrition",
    doi = "10.1093/jn/137.5.1294",
    keywords = "daidzein;  enterodiol;  enterolactone;  equol;  genistein;  glycitein;  o desmethylangolensin;  phytoestrogen;  unclassified drug, adult;  alcohol consumption;  article;  blood sampling;  body mass;  cigarette smoking;  controlled study;  demography;  drug blood level;  Europe;  female;  geographic distribution;  human;  human experiment;  male;  medical research;  multivariate logistic regression analysis;  nutritional assessment;  vegetarian, Mammalia",
    abstract = "Dietary phytoestrogens may play a role in chronic disease occurrence. The aim of our study was to assess the variability of plasma concentrations in European populations. We included 15 geographical regions in 9 European countries (Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, Sweden, The Netherlands, and UK) and a 16th region, Oxford, UK, where participants were recruited from among vegans and vegetarians. All subjects were participants of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Plasma concentrations of 3 isoflavones (daidzein, genistein, and glycitein), 2 metabolites of daidzein [O-desmethylangolensin (O-DMA) and equol] and 2 mammalian lignans (enterodiol and enterolactone) were measured in 1414 participants. We computed geometric means for each region and usedmultivariate regression analysis to assess the influence of region, adjusted for gender, age, BMI, alcohol intake, smoking status, and laboratory batch. Many subjects had concentrations below the detection limit [0.1 μg/L (0.4 nmol/L)] for glycitein (80%), O-DMA (73%) and equol (62%). Excluding subjects from Oxford, UK, the highest concentrations of isoflavones were in subjects from the Netherlands and Cambridge, UK[2-6 μg/L (7-24 nmol/L); P < 0.05], whereas concentrations for lignans were highest in Denmark [8 μg/L (27 nmol/L); P < 0.05]. Isoflavones varied 8- to 13-fold,whereas lignans varied 4-fold. In the vegetarian/vegan cohort of Oxford, concentrations of isoflavones were 5-50 times higher than in nonvegetarian regions. Region was the most important determinant of plasma concentrations for all 7 phytoestrogens. Despite the fact that plasma concentrations of phytoestrogens in Europe were low compared with Asian populations, they varied substantially among subjects from the 16 different regions. © 2007 American Society for Nutrition."
}