Natural vitamin E

Indication: LDL oxidation

Source: British Journal of Biomedical Science, 2003;60:5-8.

Research: Researchers asked 147 subjects—31 with normal blood pressure and 16 with hypertension—to take supplemental natural vitamin E (400 IU daily) with breakfast for two months. Blood was drawn from the subjects at the beginning and the end of the study. Researchers measured the time it took LDL to oxidize after it was exposed to copper, a common technique to measure LDL oxidation.

Results: Natural vitamin E supplements significantly increased the time it took for LDL to oxidize in both groups of subjects, indicating a reduced susceptibility to LDL oxidation. Among the hypertensive subjects, vitamin E supplements led to a 34% slowing in the oxidation rate. Among subjects with normal blood pressure, vitamin E supplements led to an 18.5% slowing in oxidation. At the beginning of the study, subjects with normal blood pressure had less LDL oxidation than those who had hypertension, but this difference was not statistically significant.