Positive Health Online

Abstract

TRABER, Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA, maret.traber@oregonstate.edu, has reviewed (92 references) heart disease and vitamin supplementation.

Abstract: Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States and has long been recognized to be multifactorial. A growing body of evidence suggests that not only free radical-mediated reactions but also inflammatory processes play major roles in atherogenesis. Vitamin E has both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and is the most widely studied vitamin in clinical trials. Therefore it will be the primary example used in this review. Clinical trials of vitamin E efficacy, in hindsight, have been overly optimistic in their expectation that a vitamin could reverse poor dietary habits and a sedentary lifestyle as well as provide benefit beyond that of pharmaceutical agents in treating heart disease. However, it is also apparent that most Americans do not consume dietary amounts adequate to meet established vitamin E requirements. Vitamin E can decrease biomarkers of lipid peroxidation  and requires optimal vitamin C status to function most effectively. Thus, adequate vitamin E intakes are clearly needed, but what is adequate for what function has yet to be defined. It is noteworthy that in most trials, biomarkers were not used nor were oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation markers used or plasma vitamin E concentrations measured.

Background

Methodology

Results

Conclusion

References

Traber MG. Heart disease and single-vitamin supplementation. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 85 (1): 293S-299S, Jan 2007.

Comment

Often, vitamin critics are not sufficiently knowledgeable about the clinical details required for people to achieve minimum vitamin requirements. The above review notes both the conditions necessary for optimal supplement function, as well as the fact that vitamins cannot reverse poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyle.