Vitamin E is one of the antioxidant vitamins, along with vitamins A and C. Vitamin E is particularly important for preventing oxidative damage to the membranes of cells. How does it work? The membranes of cells contain polyunsaturated fats that are easily oxidized. Vitamin E can step in and donate electrons to prevent the formation of cell-damaging free radicals. You need a certain amount of vitamin E in your diet to prevent deficiency, but we know that exercise places stress on your body and increases free radical formation short-term, especially if it’s intense. Do you need more vitamin E to counter the damage you do to your muscles when you work out?
The Antioxidant Trio
Vitamin E works in close contact with vitamin C and selenium to help reduce oxidative damage. So, you might surmise that if you need more vitamin E – the need for vitamin C and selenium would be higher as well. However, there’s no strong evidence to suggest that taking vitamin C, E, or selenium in supplement form is beneficial. In fact, some studies suggest harm.
How could vitamins that protect against oxidative damage be harmful? When you exercise, all of that lifting, jumping, and running places stress on your body. So, you breathe more rapidly to send more oxygen to cells. In the presence of oxygen, mitochondria can make ATP via aerobic pathways. However, oxygen has a downside. When cells are exposed to it, it creates more oxidative damage and free radical formation. We know that muscle cells and other tissues are exposed to significant oxidative stress and pump out free radicals during an exercise session. However, your body has a remarkable ability to adapt to exercise-induced stress. It adapts by turning on its own antioxidant defense system. Yes, your body has pathways that when turned on destroy free radicals and regular aerobic exercise makes these pathways more efficient.
Some studies suggest that if you flood your body with antioxidants, like vitamins C and E, the internal antioxidant defense system won’t become more efficient at fighting free radicals. So, rather than help, antioxidant vitamins in large doses, may hinder the body’s ability to fight oxidative damage longer.
High doses of vitamin E and other antioxidant vitamins may interfere with adaptations to exercise in another way. When you do aerobic exercise consistently, your cells produce more mitochondria as a way to boost energy production. In one study, researchers asked 50 men and women to take a daily dose of 235 milligrams of vitamin E and 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C. Another group took a placebo. After 11 weeks of interval training and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, the group that took the antioxidant supplements had lower levels of markers indicative of new mitochondrial activity. The placebo group actually fared better than the group that took antioxidants and adaptations to aerobic training were more robust in the group that didn’t take vitamin E and vitamin C.
Are There Other Benefits to Vitamin E for Athletes?
You might still be inclined to take a vitamin E supplement if there were evidence that doing so improves athletic performance. Studies have looked at this issue and failed to show performance benefits with vitamin E supplements. However, some studies link vitamin C and E with improved exercise recovery and reduced markers of muscle damage. It’s possible that the anti-inflammatory effect of vitamin E helps reign in muscle damage. However, when you consider that taking high doses of vitamin E may also interfere with healthy adaptations to aerobic exercise, it’s not a good trade-off. It’s also possible that you NEED the damage to maximize muscle adaptations.
You Still Need Enough Vitamin E
You still need vitamin E but there’s not a lot of evidence that more is better. The recommended daily intake of vitamin E for vitamin E is 14 international units. In total, there are eight isoforms of vitamin E, four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. Most supplements only contain a single isomer, alpha-tocopherol since it’s the best studied. However, research suggests that the other isoforms may be important too. This shows why it’s best to get vitamin E from food rather than supplements. A vitamin E supplement may contain only one isoform. The best natural sources of vitamin E include vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, and green, leafy vegetables. One top source of vitamin E is wheat germ oil. A single serving of this nutrient-dense oil supplies the full day’s RDA of vitamin E.
Other Possible Benefits of Vitamin E
Scientists have looked at whether vitamin E might lower the risk of heart attacks and stroke due to its ability to block platelet activity and reduce the risk of clots forming. They’ve also looked at vitamin E’s potential to prevent oxidation of LDL-cholesterol, an event linked with coronary artery disease. However, studies are inconsistent. Evidence shows that people who consume more vitamin E may have a lower risk of coronary artery disease but taking high-dose supplements doesn’t seem to be protective. In fact, in one study, it was linked with a higher risk of hemorrhagic stroke.
Studies have also looked at whether vitamin E slows the rate of cognitive decline in older people. Some research suggests that people who consume more vitamin E have slower rates of cognitive decline, but studies, where participants took vitamin E supplements, didn’t show a benefit. Studies looking at whether vitamin E supplements lower the risk of cancer are also inconsistent. Some show benefits while one study linked vitamin E supplements with a higher risk of prostate cancer in men.
The Bottom Line
It’s important to get enough vitamin E in your diet if you’re an athlete, but no evidence that getting large amounts of taking supplements will improve your performance. In fact, taking vitamin E and other antioxidant vitamins, like vitamin C, in supplement form may interfere with desired adaptations to aerobic exercise. But, make sure you’re eating enough vitamin E-rich foods but avoid taking supplements unless your physician recommends it.
References:
Mol Membr Biol. 2000 Jul-Sep;17(3):143-56.
Am J Clin Nutr August 2000 vol. 72 no. 2 647s-652s.
New York Times. “Why Vitamins May Be Bad for Your Workout”
Int J Prev Med. 2013 Apr; 4(Suppl 1): S24–S30.
Medscape.com. “Nutrition and Athletic Performance”
Eurekalert.org. “Scientists figure out how vitamin E keeps muscles healthy”
Int J Prev Med. 2013 Apr; 4(Suppl 1): S16–S23.
National Institutes of Health. “Vitamin E”
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