Did You Know Just That Many Cancers Are Linked To A Vitamin Deficiency?
Vitamin E
Daily
Value: 30 international units
Good
Food Sources: Vegetable and nut oils, including soybean,
safflower and corn; sunflower seeds; whole grains; wheat
germ; spinach
Vitamin E may well prove to be one of the most powerful
nutrients on the face of the earth.
Studies
indicate that it fights heart disease, prevents cancer,
alleviates respiratory problems and boosts your immune system's
ability to fight off infectious disease. It may also prevent
some of the damage that diabetes does to the body, particularly
to the eyes.
How
does a simple vitamin achieve such complex results? Vitamin
E works in a variety of ways, but a key mechanism seen in
the laboratory is its ability to neutralize free radicals,
naturally occurring unstable molecules that can damage your
body's healthy molecules by stealing electrons to balance
themselves.
And
what happens in the laboratory seems to translate into what
happens in real life. Two joint studies, which looked at
more than 127,000 people, for example, reported that those
who took vitamin E supplements for at least two years had
about 40 percent less risk of heart disease than those who
didn't.
"There's
a lot of evidence to support the possible benefits of vitamin
E, but these are the first studies to actually measure benefits
in terms of less disease and fewer heart attacks,"
says Meir Stampfer, M.D., Dr.P.H., an investigator at the
Harvard School of Public Health who was involved with the
study.
Yet
despite this vitamin's ability to prevent disease, somewhere
between 69 and 80 percent of older adults do not get even
the Daily Value of 30 international units. And Dr. Stampfer
maintains that we might need many times that amount to prevent
disease.
Vitamin
E deficiency, however, is very rare. Infants with low birth
weight are susceptible, as are people with conditions such
as cystic fibrosis, which prevents the proper absorption
of fat. Signs of deficiency can include neurological and
reproductive problems.
Unless
you want to drink two quarts of corn oil or eat a pound
of sunflower seeds every day, the only way to increase your
vitamin E intake is with supplements.
There
are eight different forms of the vitamin. But the supplement
labeled "d-alpha-tocopherol" is the one that will
give you the biggest bang for your buck. It makes more vitamin
E available to your body than any other form.
d-alpha-tocopherol
loses its potency when exposed to air, heat and light, so
make sure it's stored in a cool, dark place. It should be
taken with a meal that contains fat; otherwise your body
cannot absorb it adequately. It should not be taken at the
same time as an iron supplement, since iron seems to destroy
vitamin E before it can get down to business.
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Using
Vitamin E Safely
Some
studies that have found vitamin E can prevent disease have
also shown that getting somewhere between 200 and 800 international
units is necessary to release its power.
Fortunately,
the vitamin seems to be relatively safe, even at higher
doses. Studies indicate that daily supplements of 800 and
900 international units have been taken without any reported
problems. People who are taking anticoagulants (sometimes
called blood thinners or heart medicine) should not take
vitamin E supplements, however, because they can be harmful.
Some experts think it's also a good idea for people who
have had strokes or bleeding problems to consult their doctors
before taking supplements. Vitamin E can also interfere
with the absorption and action of vitamin K, which is involved
in blood coagulation.
On
the other hand, those who are taking anticonvulsants, cholesterol-lowering
drugs, tuberculosis drugs, ulcer medication or the antibiotic
neomycin should probably talk to their doctors about increasing
the amount of vitamin E they take. All of these medications
can increase the body's need for the nutrient.
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