Are you getting enough vitamin E in your diet? The recommended daily allowance for vitamin E is 15 milligrams per day for adults. This is the amount that prevents deficiency in 97% of healthy people. What this value doesn’t take into account is individual variations based on age, health status, as well as another factor – the type of diet you eat. A number of experts believe the amount of vitamin E you should be getting should depend on the composition of their diet. Here’s why.
Forms of Vitamin E: What is Vitamin E?
Vitamin E isn’t a single compound. In fact, there are eight isomers, different structural forms of vitamin E. Four of these are called tocopherols and four are called tocotrienols. The tocopherols are called alpha, beta, gamma, and delta tocopherol. Much of the vitamin E in the American diet is in the form of gamma tocopherol. That’s because most vegetable oils contain this form of vitamin E. In contrast, other foods, particularly green, leafy vegetables, contain a substantial quantity of alpha-tocopherol, another vitamin E isomer.
How about supplements? Most vitamin E supplements contain alpha-tocopherol, although you can buy more expensive supplements that contain all eight isomers of vitamin E.
Why You Need Vitamin E
The main function of vitamin E is to protect your cell membranes against damage from free radicals. As you probably know, free radicals injure cells by stealing electrons from them, making them unstable. Vitamin E steps in to replace the lost electron, thereby restoring cellular peace. Because vitamin E is lipid soluble and the membrane of a cell is too, it’s the primary protector of cell membranes.
Because of its role as an antioxidant, vitamin E also plays a role in the prevention of heart disease. When cell membranes are damaged by free radicals, it creates inflammation. One way vitamin E may lower heart disease risk is by preventing oxidation of LDL-cholesterol. Once LDL is oxidized, it can more easily stick to the arterial wall and spark an inflammatory response that ultimately leads to plaque formation and atherosclerotic heart disease. The danger is the plaque will rupture and cause a clot to form in the wall of the vessel, what we know of as a heart attack. Vitamin E also helps keep platelets from clumping together to form a clot, another factor that may lower the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Also of note is research showing older adults who are deficient in vitamin E have a higher risk of bone fractures. Plus, some research suggests vitamin E may improve cognition in people with Alzheimer’s disease. In the elderly, there’s some evidence that vitamin E improves immune health as well.
The Amount of Vitamin E You Need May Depend on the Diet You Eat
The average American eats a diet rich in polyunsaturated fats. Some of these fats, like the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil, are healthy, while others are less beneficial. For example, vegetable oils are processed and typically contain more omega-6s, making them inflammatory. When you consume these fats, the fatty acids are incorporated into your cell membranes. Being unstable, they’re also prone toward oxidative damage. Guess what helps offset that damage? Vitamin E, of course. Therefore, when you consume lots of unsaturated fats, your vitamin E needs go up as well. For example, many people take fish oil supplements for the omega-3s they contain. Doing so means you need more vitamin E for cell membrane protection.
Why a Supplement Isn’t the Answer
You might be tempted to reach for a vitamin E supplement to get the extra vitamin E you need. However, as mentioned, vitamin E supplements contain mainly alpha-tocopherol. While alpha-tocopherol is the form with the strongest antioxidant capabilities, other forms of vitamin E also have benefits. For example, gamma tocopherol appears to have anti-inflammatory activity that’s distinct from alpha-tocopherol. In natural food sources, you find varying quantities of the eight isomers of vitamin E, suggesting your body has a need for more than just the alpha and gamma tocopherol isomers.
By taking an alpha-tocopherol supplement, you can “drown out” the other effects of the other isomers of vitamin E by flooding your system with one isomer. This may be why studies fail to show that supplementing with vitamin E lowers the risk of heart disease whereas a diet rich in vitamin E seems to be protective. In addition, research also links high-dose supplementation with a greater risk of prostate cancer and overall mortality.
Fortunately, you can get vitamin E from a variety of foods. You find vitamin E in vegetable oils, including soybean oil and corn oil, but these aren’t the healthiest sources due to their high content of omega-6 unsaturated fats. Healthier sources include avocados, almonds, olive oil, wheat germ, and wheat germ oil, and sesame seeds. Plus, sesame seeds contain a lignin called sesamin that helps your body better retain vitamin E by reducing its breakdown. Dark, leafy greens are another good source of vitamin E but you need to consume leafy, greens with a source of fat for maximal absorption. In fact, in the absence of fat, little vitamin E can be absorbed. So, add olive oil and sesame seeds to your next spinach salad to maximize the bioavailability of vitamin E.
Other Situations Where You Need More Vitamin E
Vitamin E requirements go up during pregnancy with the requirements increasing from 15 milligrams per day to 22 to 30 milligrams daily. Plus, vitamin E deficiency increases the risk of birth complications, including pre-term birth. However, studies don’t support the use of supplements. Food is the best way to meet your vitamin E needs, even during pregnancy.
You also need more vitamin E after the age of 65 due to its protective effect against bone fractures and its positive impact on immune health. Certain intestinal conditions can also reduce vitamin E absorption as well.
The Bottom Line
Make sure you’re getting enough vitamin E in your diet to protect your cells, especially if you eat a diet high in polyunsaturated fats. Many foods that contain polyunsaturated fats also have vitamin E but not necessarily enough. Just as importantly, make sure you’re choosing healthy, whole foods sources of vitamin E rather than processed vegetables oils or packaged foods fortified with it.
References:
National Institutes of Health. “Vitamin E”
Br J Nutr. 2015 Oct 28;114(8):1113-22. doi: 10.1017/S000711451500272X. Epub 2015 Aug 21.
ScienceDaily.com. “Study Finds Huge Variability In Vitamin E Absorption”
Examine.com. “Vitamin E”
Cochrane. “Vitamin E Supplementation in Pregnancy”
Up to Date. “Overview of Vitamin E”
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