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Vitamin E
Vitamin E, or tocopherol, is like
the Arnold Schwarzeneggar of the antioxidant world. It uses its antioxidant
muscle to protect your cells by breaking up free radical reactions. Vitamin
E is the most effective "chain-breaking" antioxidant. Some antioxidants
prevent oxidation, but chain-breakers like vitamin E can repair oxidation
after it has occurred.
As you know, free radicals are
unstable molecules that have become oxidized. This means they lack an
electron and try to steal one from the cells in your body. When vitamin E
encounters these free radicals, it gives them an electron, making them
stable once again, but the vitamin E becomes oxidized in the process.
Fortunately, the oxidized form of vitamin e is relatively harmless and can
be repaired to function as an antioxidant once again.
The repair process for vitamin E
requires a little help, mostly from vitamin C and the amino acid
glutathione. Although vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin and vitamin C is a
water-soluble vitamin, they cooperate to form a tag team to fight free
radicals. while vitamin E and vitamin C are both antioxidants in their own
right, when vitamin E sacrifices itself to break up a free radical, vitamin
C steps in. It helps recycle vitamin E so it can return to its job as a free
radical buster.
Because vitamin E is a
fat-soluble vitamin, it is stored in fat cells in your body. this is
important because fat is particularly susceptible to free radical damage.
Vitamin E helps protect these fats, especially polyunsaturated fats, from
becoming oxidized.
Vitamin e doesn't just sit in one
place, waiting for free radicals to show up so it can do its job. Vitamin E
is much busier than that. It travels all over your body to seek out and
destroy free radicals and prevent damage to important cells. this is how
vitamin E protects every part of your body from free radical damage -- from
your heart to your skin.
It's tough to get scientists to agree on anything, but most researchers
think there is strong evidence that antioxidants help your body fight
disease. Of all the known antioxidants, vitamin E probably has the most
convincing evidence of its disease-fighting capabilities.
Fires up your immune system. Have you noticed that it takes
you just a little bit longer to walk to the mailbox than when you were
younger ? Most people begin to move a little more slowly as they get older.
Your immune system begins to move more slowly, too. As you age, it takes
longer for your body to fight off bacteria and infection. This gives disease
more time to become firmly established in your body's cells. Vitamin E
stimulates your immune system, making it work more quickly and efficiently.
Studies show that when elderly people are given vitamin E supplements, their
immune response times improve.
This helps increase resistance tot he damaging effects of viruses, strokes,
infections, and even smog.
Heads off heart disease ? Once the hero of heart health,
vitamin E's reputation has diminished lately. Several new studies have found
no conclusive evidence that vitamin E provides any benefits to your heart.
But don't dismiss this nutrient just yet. There is research supporting the
heart-protecting effects of vitamin E.
For example, one study found that
women who ate foods high in vitamin E were 62 percent less likely to die
from a heart attack as women with low vitamin E intakes.
Another study found that people
who already had symptoms of heart disease could benefit from vitamin E
supplements. People with heart disease symptoms who took supplements of 400
to 800 International Units (IU) of vitamin E daily were about three times
less likely to suffer a heart attack as those who didn't take supplements.
How does vitamin E work its
heart-guarding magic ? Most researchers think vitamin E stops oxidation of
LDL, the "bad" cholesterol. As LDL cholesterol travels through your
bloodstream, it often likes to cling to the walls of your blood vessels.
This eventually causes clumps that make your arteries much narrower, causing
your hard-working heart to work even harder to pump blood through these tiny
passageways.
Oxidation of LDL cholesterol by
free radicals makes it more likely to stick to your artery walls. Vitamin E
stops free radical damage and keeps LDL cholesterol where it belongs -- on
the move.
Stops strokes. Vitamin E's
ability to stop LDL cholesterol from clinging to your blood vessel walls may
also help prevent another potential killer -- stroke. The clots that form on
artery walls sometimes break loose and travel to your brain where they can
cause a stroke.
Vitamin E also fights stroke by
making your blood more slippery and less likely to form clots. A study on
the effects of another well-known anticoagulant, aspirin, found that people
given 400 IU of vitamin E and 325 mg of aspirin to prevent blood clots were
about half as likely to form clots as people taking aspirin alone.
Prevents cancer ?
Could vitamin E hold the key to safer cancer treatment and prevention ?
Although it is doubtful that one substance will ever be able to fend off all
cancers, vitamin E may at least help. Researchers say vitamin e may help
defend DNA against damage that can set off the growth of cancer.
• Low levels of vitamin E are
associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. A high fat intake is
also associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. Researchers
think vitamin E may protect against breast cancer by preventing the
development of cancer-causing substances that are created when fat is
metabolized.
• A recent study found that
people who took a vitamin E supplement regularly for at least six months
were half as likely to develop oral cancers as other people.
• A study on esophageal and
stomach cancers in Japan found that people who took a supplement of
vitamin E, beta carotene, and selenium lowered their risks of dying from
cancer by 13 percent.
• Vitamin E supplements have
been shown to slow the rates of tumor growth in people who have leukemia
or lymphoma. This is probably due to vitamin E's effect in enhancing
immune system response.
• Men who were given 50 IU of
vitamin E daily for five to eight years were less likely to develop
prostate cancer than those who did not take vitamin E.
Enhances exercise.
Since free radicals are produced from oxygen, and your oxygen intake
increases during exercise, wouldn't your level of free radicals also
increase ? Yes, it does. Does that mean you should stop exercising and
become a couch potato ? hardly. The benefits of exercise far outweigh the
damage a few extra free radicals can do. But if you truly want to make the
most of your exercise, you can counteract the effects of increased free
radicals by getting plenty of vitamin e. studies show that vitamin E can
reduce the muscle damage caused by free radicals during exercise,
particularly in older people.
Aids against asthma.
As an antioxidant powerhouse, vitamin E may cut your risk of asthma. A study
in Saudi Arabia found that children who had the least vitamin E in their
diets were three times more likely to get asthma. Research also shows that
vitamin E helps protect you from developing this condition as an adult.
Counteracts excessive iron.
Your body needs iron for healthy blood, but too much iron can lead to liver
damage or cirrhosis, a chronic disease of the liver. Since your liver
performs many important functions in your body, including cleansing your
blood of toxic substances, liver damage can be deadly. Vitamin E may protect
your liver from excess iron, which will help keep this vital organ
functioning properly.
Shields skin and eyes from
light damage. Do you love the beach ? Do you spend a lot of time in
your garden Does your job keep you outdoors a lot ? Being outdoors in
the bright sunshine can be invigorating, but too much exposure to sunlight
can damage your skin and eyes. If you love to have fun in the sun, make sure
you get plenty of vitamin E. It may help protect your skin and eyes from
damaged caused by excessive light exposure. |
