Emma McGowan NatureCity author & contributor

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is the most advanced form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. A recent animal study suggests that taking d-mixed tocotrienols together with alpha-tocopherol may improve liver health, while taking just one type of vitamin E showed no similar results.

Vitamin E has eight different forms: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta). Tocopherol is the most common form in both the American diet and European diets. Tocotrienols are less prominent in the Western diet.

The researchers gave rats either d-mixed tocotrienols, alpha-tocopherols, or a mixture of both. They found that only the mixture resulted in improved markers of liver health.

Researchers from the Kanagawa Institute of Technology and Eisai Food & Chemical Co. in Japan conducted the study. It was published in the March 2013 issue of the Journal of Clinical Biochemistry and Nutrition.

This is not the first study to examine the effects of vitamin E on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Researchers from the Universiti Sains Malaysi conducted a study in 2010 where
participants with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease were given 200 mg of a tocotrienol complex twice daily for one year. At the end of the year, 67% of the participants showed significant improvements and 50% showed no signs of the disease anymore.

Previous studies have also shown that vitamin E intake is associated with lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Emma McGowan NatureCity author & contributor

Recent studies have suggested that too much vitamin E intake is bad for your health, with some even claiming it can increase the risk of mortality. A new review of how vitamin E is metabolized, however, has discovered that the body actually excretes any excess vitamin E, meaning there is no such thing as too much vitamin E.

The researchers noted that the liver controls vitamin E levels in the body and that it excretes any amount that can’t be used on a regular basis. The only results noted from exceptionally high levels of vitamin E supplement consumption were a doubling of the tissue levels of vitamin E.

The researchers also noted that vitamin E’s interaction with vitamin K can cause some increase in bleeding but that this has not been shown to have a health risk thus far.

The biggest health risk associated with vitamin E, according to the researchers, is vitamin E deficiency, due to the many critical roles vitamin E plays in maintaining optimal health.

Researchers from the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University conducted the study. It was published online ahead of print on March 15, 2013, in the Journal of Lipid Research.

Vitamin E has been linked to lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

If you’re looking to add more vitamin E to your diet, try eating more sunflower seeds, breakfast cereal, tomatoes, dried herbs, and dried apricots.

Emma McGowan NatureCity author & contributor

Previous research has suggested that vitamin E levels may be related to the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. A recent study sought to verify that the use of MRI brain scans together with measurements of plasma blood levels of all forms of vitamin E could be used to differentiate individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment from those who are cognitively intact.

All eight forms of vitamin E were measured – four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta).

Participants in the study included 81 individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, 86 with mild cognitive impairment, and 86 controls that were cognitively intact. The researchers found that the individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment had lower levels all the forms of vitamin E.

The use of MRI brain scans in conjunction with plasma vitamin E measures resulted in 98.2% accuracy in differentiating participants with Alzheimer’s disease from those with no impairment. Accuracy in differentiating participants with mild cognitive impairment from those with no impairment was 90.7%.

The researchers suggest that this method may be used to determine who is at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment.

Researchers from the Karolinska Institut in Sweden conducted the study. It was published online ahead of print on January 24, 2013, in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

Vitamin E has been linked to lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

If you’re looking to add more vitamin E to your diet, try eating more sunflower seeds, breakfast cereal, tomatoes, dried herbs, and dried apricots.

Emma McGowan NatureCity author & contributor

A recent study suggests that supplementation with all eight forms of vitamin E may noticeably reduce the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment, an ailment that can lead to Alzheimer’s disease.

The study found that the risk of mild cognitive impairment was 15% lower in people with the highest levels of all eight forms of vitamin E. The risk of Alzheimer’s disease was 8% lower.

The eight forms of vitamin E are four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta). The researchers emphasized that all eight forms are necessary to see the positive effects shown here.

The researchers examined data from the AddNeuroMed-Project, which included 168 participants with Alzheimer’s, 166 with mild cognitive impairment, and 187 with no cognitive issues. When they compared vitamin E levels, they found that the people suffering from cognitive decline had lower levels of tocopherols, tocotrienols, and total vitamin E.

The joint study was conducted by researchers in several European countries. Their findings were published in the October 2012 issue of the journal Neurobiology of Aging.

Vitamin E has been linked to lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

If you’re looking to add more vitamin E to your diet, try eating more sunflower seeds, breakfast cereal, tomatoes, dried herbs, and dried apricots.

Sarah McGowan-Freije, NatureCity author & contributor

According to recent research, high intake of vitamin E may significantly reduce the risk of liver cancer, even in people with family history of the disease. The results were the same for dietary intake and supplement consumption.

The researchers examined data from the Shanghai Women’s Health Study, which took place between 1997 and 2000, and the Shanghai Men’s Health Study, which took place between 2002 and 2006. In total, 132,837 people participated in the study.

To determine vitamin E intake, the researchers administered food-frequency questionnaires. They found that the individuals who consumed the most vitamin E had a noticeably lower risk of developing liver cancer than those who consumed the least vitamin E.

The study was conducted by researchers at the Shanghai Cancer Institute and Vanderbilt University. Their results were published online ahead of print on July 17, 2012, in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin with high antioxidant content. Previous studies have shown that vitamin E is associated with lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Emma McGowan NatureCity author & contributor

Recent research suggests that daily supplementation with vitamin E could reduce the risk of erythrocyte hemolysis, or rupture of the red blood cells, which is a marker of oxidative stress. This can lead to anemia, jaundice, and reticulocytosis.

The researchers were based at Qingdao University in Qingdao, China. The results were published online ahead of print on April 26, 2012, in the journal Nutrition Research.

Participants in the study included 180 healthy adults between the ages of 55 and 77. They were assigned to one of four daily interventions for a period of 4 months:

1. a placebo

2. 100 mg dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate

3. 200 mg dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate

4. 300 mg dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate

Dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate is the synthetic type of the alpha-tocopherol form of vitamin E.

At the end of the study the researchers noted that vitamin E blood levels increased by 0 in the placebo group, by 71% in the 100 mg group, by 78% in the 200 mg group, and by 95% in the 300 mg group. They also noticed reduced instances of erythrocyte hemolysis ranging from 20% to 38% in the vitamin E groups

Improvements in ethrocyte membrane fluidity were observed in all three vitamin E groups. Additionally, they noted that levels of malodialdehyde, a marker of oxidative stress, were significantly decreased in the vitamin E groups.

Vitamin E has eight different forms: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and has been shown to help many aspects of the body. Tocopherol is the most common form in both the American diet and European diets. Tocotrienols are less prominent in the Western diet.

Previous studies have shown that vitamin E intake is associated with lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Scott Greenberg, NatureCity author & contributor

An exciting new study suggests that orally delivered vitamin E in the form of tocotrienols slows down the progression of model end stage liver disease (MELD) in patients awaiting liver transplant. This is the only intervention to date that has been shown to reduce the risk of morbidity in patients suffering from MELD.

Conducted by researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center, the findings of this study were published in the March 2012 edition of the Journal of Nutrition.

Participants included 80 adults who represented a mix of healthy subjects and surgical patients. The surgical participants included individuals with heart failure, those awaiting liver transplants, obese people who had received plastic surgery and epileptics. For this subsection of the study, the researchers focused specifically on the blood and tissues levels of tocotrienol and tocopherol vitamin E in MELD patients.

The healthy participants all received 400 milligrams of tocotrienol daily for 12 weeks, while the surgery patients were assigned either 400 mg of tocotrienol or 400 mg of tocopherol for the same period of time. For the tocotrienol supplementation, participants were given Tocomin SupraBio™ Palm Tocotrienol Complex softgels.

The researchers measured blood levels of both forms of vitamin E in the vital organs at the onset and conclusion of the study, including the liver of the MELD patients.

Supplementation of tocotrienol significantly increased the levels of that nutrient found in blood, skin, fatty tissue, the brain, the heart and the liver of the healthy participants. Additionally, levels found in the brain matched levels found to be neuroprotective in earlier research.

For the participants awaiting liver transplant, tocotrienol supplementation lowered the MELD score in 50% of the participants, while tocopherol supplementation resulted in a lower score for only 20 % of the participants. The MELD score is a scoring system used to measure how far chronic liver disease has advanced and whether or not the patient needs a liver transplant.

Palm oil is a great source for tocotrienols and they can also be found in rice, bran, oat, barley and wheat germ. Previous studies have shown that tocotrienols may be able to help lower cholesterol, reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke and lower blood pressure.

Scott Greenberg, NatureCity author & contributor

Researchers previously believed that tocopherols (a form of vitamin E) prevent the absorption of tocotrienols (another form of vitamin E). A recent study however shows that oral supplementation with a blend of tocotrienols increases vitamin E levels in the tissues and organs, even when tocotrienols are present.

More notable was the finding that oral tocotrienol supplements (using Tocomin Suprabio®) raised the concentration of tocotrienols in blood to a level 20 times higher than the minimum amount previously shown to protect the brain from damage caused by a stroke.

The scientists noted this is the first study to show that oral tocotrienol supplements can raise tocotrienol levels throughout the body: in the blood, skin, brain, cardiac muscle, adipose and liver.

Conducted by researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center, the findings of this study were published in the March, 2012 edition of the Journal of Nutrition.

Participants included 80 adults who represented a mix of healthy subjects and surgical patients. The surgical participants included individuals with heart failure, liver transplants, obese people who had received plastic surgery and epileptics.

The healthy participants all received 400 milligrams of tocotrienol daily for 12 weeks, while the surgery patients were assigned either 400 mg of tocotrienol or 400 mg of tocopherol for the same period of time. The researchers conducted skin biopsies and blood samples at the onset of the study and at the conclusion.

At the end of the 12 week period, the healthy participants showed noticeable increases in skin and blood levels of tocotrienols, as well as a 10-fold increase in tocotrienol levels in fat tissue compared to controls.

Vitamin E comes in eight different forms: four tocoperols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and has been shown to help many aspects of the body. Tocopherol is the most common form in both the American diet and European diets, but tocotrienols are harder to obtain through dietary sources.

Previous studies have shown that vitamin E intake is associated with lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Scott Greenberg, NatureCity author & contributor

Vitamin E doesn’t make the news as often as vitamins D or B12, but that doesn’t mean it’s not essential for your health. It is especially important as we age, a fact demonstrated in a recent study showing that lack of all the forms of vitamin E contributes to Alzheimer’s and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI, a precursor to Alzheimer’s).

The study was conducted by researchers based at the Aging Research Center at the Karolinska Institut in Stockholm, Sweden. Their findings were published online ahead of print in Neurobiology of Aging on December 20, 2011.

Vitamin E exists in 8 different forms, which include tocopherols and tocotrienols. The most common form of vitamin E is alpha-tocopherol, but to get the full benefits of this nutrient you must consume all of the 8 forms found in nature.

For this study, the researchers examined vitamin E parameters and vitamin E damage markers in 168 individuals with Alzheimer’s, 166 individuals with MCI and 187 individuals with no signs of cognitive impairment.

They found that the participants with Alzheimer’s and MCI exhibited significantly lower vitamin E plasma levels and significantly higher vitamin E damage markers when compared with the cognitively normal group. The researchers suggest that this points to an association between the oxidative stress that occurs during the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and vitamin E’s ability to reduce oxidative stress.

Cognitive health isn’t the only reason to take vitamin E. Previous studies have shown that vitamin E intake is associated with lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Dietary sources of vitamin E include sunflower seeds, breakfast cereal, tomatoes, dried herbs, and dried apricots. Try sprinkling some seeds in your cereal for a double dosage of vitamin E or carry around some apricots for a snack in the afternoon.

Scott Greenberg, NatureCity author & contributor

Do you find yourself saying “What?” a little more often than before during conversations? Researchers from the University of Sydney conducted a study that found you may be able to prevent your hearing loss from getting worse by increasing your vitamin E and vitamin A intake.

The study was published online ahead of print in The Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging on July 12, 2011.

Participants in the study included 2,956 adults participating in the Blue Mountains Hearing Study, which took place from 1997-1999 and again from 2002-2004. All of the participants were at least 50 years of age at the onset of the study.

The scientists assessed age-related hearing loss using pure tone audiometry, which measures hearing at various frequencies. Dietary intake data was collected via a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. The questionnaire was used to determine intake of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin, lycopene, vitamins A, C and E, iron and zinc.

After adjusting for other factors affecting hearing loss (such as age, sex, noise exposure, etc.) the researchers concluded that the people with the highest level of vitamin A had a 47% reduced risk of hearing loss when compared to people with the lowest intakes. In addition, increasing dietary intake of vitamin E was associated with a 14% reduction in hearing loss.

The researchers believe that this beneficial effect comes from the antioxidants present in the vitamins. They noted that a reactive oxygen species seems to damage the inner ear, an occurrence that can be counterbalanced by the antioxidants.

Vitamin E has been linked to lower cholesterol, healthier skin, maintaining a proper hormonal balance, and preventing myothropic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Vitamin A has been shown to improve diarrhea and the symptoms of respiratory disease, to slow the growth of pancreatic cancer cells, and to reduce the risk of measles. People who are deficient in vitamin A are also at risk for vision problems and many chronic diseases.

If you’re looking to add more vitamin E to your diet, try eating more sunflower seeds, breakfast cereal, tomatoes, dried herbs, and dried apricots. For vitamin A, look to beef liver, egg yolk, cheddar cheese, and fortified milk. If you think you’re not getting enough of these essential vitamins in your daily diet, try a high quality supplement.