Lifelong Proper Intake of Vitamin E is Crucial, Researchers Say

Lisa Franchi September 19, 2014

New research from the Oregon State University suggests that adequate levels of this essential micronutrient are especially critical for the very young, the elderly, and women who are or may become pregnant.

According to the researchers, a lifelong proper intake of vitamin E is important. Meanwhile, some critics have raised unnecessary alarms about excessive vitamin E intake while in fact the diet of most people is insufficient, said Maret Traber, a professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences at Oregon State University, principal investigator with the Linus Pauling Institute and national expert on vitamin E.

"Many people believe that vitamin E deficiency never happens," Traber said. "That isn’t true. It happens with an alarming frequency both in the United States and around the world. But some of the results of inadequate intake are less obvious, such as its impact on things like nervous system and brain development, or general resistance to infection."

Researchers pointed out one study which found that people who are highly motivated to eat a proper diet consume almost enough vitamin E, but broader surveys show that 90 per cent of men and 96 per cent of women don’t consume the amount currently recommended, 15 milligrams per day for adults.

In their review of multiple studies, researchers outlined some of the recent findings about vitamin E. Among the most important is the significance of vitamin E during foetal development and in the first years of life; the correlation between adequate intake and dementia later in life; and the difficulty of evaluating vitamin E adequacy through measurement of blood levels alone.

Inadequate vitamin E is associated with increased infection, anaemia, stunting of growth and poor outcomes during pregnancy for both the infant and mother. Meanwhile, overt deficiency, especially in children, can cause neurological disorders, muscle deterioration, and even cardiomyopathy.

Further, studies on animals indicate that vitamin E is critically important to the early development of the nervous system in embryos, in part because it protects the function of omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA, which is important for brain health. The most sensitive organs include the head, eye and brain.

The review also notes that circulating vitamin E levels in the blood often rise with age as lipid levels also increase, but do not prove an adequate delivery of vitamin E to tissues and organs. And while E supplements do not seem to prevent Alzheimer’s disease occurrence, it may help slow its progression.

"It’s important all of your life, but the most compelling evidence about vitamin E is about a 1000-day window that begins at conception," Traber said. "Vitamin E is critical to neurologic and brain development that can only happen during that period. It’s not something you can make up for later."

Source of this article: Vitamin E intake critical during “the first 1000 days”