Professional Quality Vitamin Supplements at Discount Prices

HSR's (Health Supplement Retailer) Guide to Vitamins

Vitamin E

In 1932, researchers discovered that something in vegetable oils was necessary for reproduction in rats--namely, vitamin E. They referred to it as the antisterility vitamin, which turned out to be an unfortunate designation since it was subsequently found not to have this activity in humans. The same researchers isolated the pure substance from wheat germ oil in 1936 and elucidated the structure in 1938, giving it the chemical name of tocopherol (after the Greek words tokos, meaning "offspring," and photo, meaning "to bring forth"). 

Vitamin E is actually a group of eight compounds, including four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta) and four additional tocotrienol derivatives. Alpha-tocopherol is the most common form. It is usually what is meant by the term vitamin E. Pure vitamin E compounds are easily oxidized, so they are manufactured as acetate or succinate esters. 

Natural vitamin E is d-alpha tocopherol, whereas a synthetically produced vitamin E is a mixture consisting of both the d- and I- isomers as dl-alpha-tocopheroL It has been shown that natural vitamin E has a substantially greater bioavailability than synthetic vitamin E.

As with all fats, the intestinal absorption of vitamin E requires adequate production of bile salts and pancreatic enzymes. It is estimated that normally healthy humans absorb from 50 percent to 70 percent of dietary vitamin E. However, absorption efficiency falls to less than 10 percent with therapeutic doses above 200 mg/d. Natural vitamin E has approximately one and a half times the bioavailability of synthetic vitamin E. 

There are no known toxicities associated with vitamin E. Approximately 60 percent to 70 percent of the daily dose is excreted in the feces. Most individuals studied while taking large doses of vitamin E have not shown toxic effects. However, isolated cases of people taking over 1,000 IN daily reported side effects that included headache, fatigue, nausea, double vision, muscular weakness and GI distress. Symptoms of vitamin E deficiency include dry skin, dull dry hair, rupturing of red blood cells resulting in anemia, easy bruising, PMS, fibrocystic breasts, hot flashes, eczema, psoriasis, cataracts, benign prostatic hyperplasia, poor wound healing, muscle weakness and sterility. 

Functions in the Body/Clinical Applications

Vitamin E is the body's most important fat-soluble antioxidant. As such, it ensures the stability and integrity of cellular tissues and membranes throughout the body by preventing free radical damage. A study involving 153 patients with coronary artery disease evaluated the clinical impact of antioxidant supplementation, including vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and selenium, on people with low HDL levels in an effort to improve the HDL-to-LDL ratio, The participants were followed for 12 months after randomization to one of three groups: placebo; simvastatin and niacin; or simvastatin, niacin plus antioxidants. The treatment groups compared to the placebo group had significant reductions in plasma cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL cholesterol. The desired increases in HDL were higher in the simvastatin/niacin group than in the simvastatin/niacin/antioxidant group. Investigators noted that antioxidant use apparently blunted the beneficial impacts of pharmaceuticals in improving the ratio.

Vitamin E also works to decrease platelet adhesion, protecting blood vessels against developing atherosclerotic lesions and preventing oxidation of LDL cholesterol. During heavy exercise, vitamin E markedly reduces the amount of exercise-induced free radical damage to the blood and tissues, and also helps the body reduce the incidence of exercise-induced muscle injury. It has been shown to enhance the immune system and protect the eyes against cataracts and macular degeneration. Its clinical applications include:

• Alzheimer's disease: Over a period of two years, vitamin E at 2,000 IU/d was shown to slow the progression of the disease.

• Atherosclerosis: Vitamin E retards LDL oxidation, inhibits the proliferation of smooth muscle cells, and reduces the damage to vascular endothelial cells. 

• Cancer: Vitamin E may protect against carcinogenesis and tumor growth and could reduce the toxicity of several anticancer therapies.

• Cataracts: Vitamin E supplements result in a 50 percent decrease in risk of cataracts.7 In fact, 158 patients were followed for three years, and daily use of beta-carotene, vitamin C and vitamin E demonstrated a small deceleration in the progression of age-related cataracts.

• Cervical dysplasia: Women with cervical dysplasia have significantly lower plasma vitamin E levels. 

• Crohn's disease: The comprehensive nutritional status was assessed in 32 patients and 32 healthy control subjects. Patients with Crohn's disease were found to have significantly lower levels of vitamin E compared to controls. Other studies have found low antioxidant levels, including vitamin E, in people with Crohn's disease and other inflammatory bowel disorders, but question the clinical significance of these findings. 

• Diabetes: Low vitamin E levels increase the risk of non-insulin dependant diabetes, and supplementation with 900 IU/d of vitamin E improves insulin action.

• Heart attack prevention: Patients with a previous myocardial infarction who took 400 IU/d or 800 IU/d had a 47-percent reduction in secondary heart attacks 

• Osteoarthritis: At 400 IU/d, vitamin E produced significant reduction in pain scores, equal to the benefits other patients obtained from using Diclofenac.'

• PMS: A dose of 400 IU/d produced significant improvement in certain affective symptoms and physical symptoms in some women with PMS.

• Rheumatoid arthritis: It was found that t,200 IU/d of vitamin E may exert a small but significant analgesic in patients with RA.   

Reprinted from the November 2002 issue of HSR's Guide to Vitamins

Find Vitamin E Formulas at a Featured Merchant (below)

Vitamin E Index

Shipping $100 Orders Ship Free
PayPal now accepts payments without the need to register.  Sign up for additional benefits!

To make a purchase, just press the "ADD TO CART" buttons for the items you want.  When finished shopping click the  "VIEW CART" button above to check out.  Shipping charges are added during checkout.