Vitamin E with Tocotrienols 210 IU

Natural tocotrienols

Vitamin E with Tocotrienol 210IU, alpha tocotrienols 12 IU's, gamma tocotrienols 12 IU's.

Both tocotrienols and tocopherols, whose derivatives are in eight different isoforms, belong to vitamin E. However, some research suggests tocotrienols are more potent in their anti-oxidation and anti-cancer effect than the common forms of tocopherol due to significant differences in chemical structure. The unsaturated side-chain in tocotrienols makes them penetrate tissues with saturated fatty layers more efficiently, making them potentially more useful for cosmetic products.

While tocopherols are generally present in common vegetable oils (i.e. soy, canola), tocotrienols, on the other hand, are concentrated in cereal grains (ie. oat, barley, and rye, rice bran), with the highest level found in crude palm oil. Commercial tocotrienols and tocopherols are mainly obtained from natural sources, such as palm or rice bran oil.

There are eight naturally occurring forms of vitamin E, four are tocopherols (alpha, beta, delta, and gamma) and four are tocotrienols (alpha, beta, delta, and gamma). The most commonly known form is d-alpha tocopherol, discovered in 1922 during studies related to fertility. Vitamin E has been extensively studied since that time for its role as a fat-soluble antioxidant, especially as it relates to reproductive, neurologic, cardiovascular, and immune system health.*

Research on the tocotrienol forms of vitamin E began in the 1980s. It was discovered that these forms of vitamin E possessed unique biological activity that d-alpha tocopherol does not have.* Various cell and animal studies demonstrated significant immune support, especially related to reproductive health.* This is because tocotrienols have a unique structure containing a short isoprenoid tail with three unsaturated bonds. Tocopherols also have a tail, but it is fully saturated, longer, and stiffer – and due to its saturation has less ability to interact in cellular metabolism. This tail is the only difference between a tocotrienol and a tocopherol. The short and flexible tail of the tocotrienols enables them to move about more freely and enter into metabolic function in ways that plain vitamin E does not.* For example, a recent cell study showed that tocotrienols helped estrogen (estradiol) not form epoxides (a significant finding), whereas plain d-alpha tocopherol offered no such benefit.*

In the 1990s extremely high quality forms of tocotrienols from rice bran oil become available for the consumer public. Wellness Resources was one of the first companies to use this novel nutrient – and we are glad we did! Our product is specially made so that no filler oils are used and there is a balance of alpha and gamma tocotrienol. Most tocotrienol products are high in only gamma tocotrienol and use a diluent oil to make production easier. Wellness Resources is the only company producing this quality of tocotrienol product.

Alpha Tocotrienol
The different forms of vitamin E are not redundant and do not perform the same biological functions. A variety of cell and animal studies have shown that alpha tocotrienol is extraordinarily protective of the nervous system, whereas d-alpha tocopherol could not compare.* This was partly due to alpha tocotrienol's superior antioxidant activity and partly due to its unique structure and consequent ability to influence natural mechanisms involved with nerve protection.*

Cell studies have also shown that:

Alpha tocotrienol stabilizes the endothelial cells that line the circulatory system far more than d-alpha tocopherol. It was shown that the isoprenoid tail was partly responsible for this increased protection.*
Alpha tocotrienols are absorbed into cell membranes seventy times better than d-alpha tocopherol.*
Alpha tocotrienol protects red blood cells significantly better than d-alpha tocopherol.*
Gamma Tocotrienol
Gamma tocotrienol is being extensively researched for its significant properties regarding cellular health and cholesterol metabolism.*

Gamma tocotrienol has been shown to modulate the NF-kappaB gene signal as well as other signals involved with cellular survival.* Numerous cell studies are showing that gamma tocotrienol is very protective of cells involved with the female and male reproductive systems, and cells in general.*

Gamma tocotrienol communicates with the primary enzyme involved with cholesterol metabolism, HMG CoA reductase.* In normal cholesterol metabolism, the production of cholesterol is self regulating. This is similar to a person at the end of a production line making a phone call back to the person at the front of the line, telling them enough widgets have been made. In cholesterol metabolism this occurs through the production of isoprenoids in one of the branch pathways of normal cholesterol production. Isoprenoids communicate back to the HMG CoA reductase enzyme and tell it to "go home from work for the day, you are no longer needed." As it turns out, the tail of gamma tocotrienol is an isoprenoid that assists in modulating cholesterol production in a natural manner.* Human and animal studies have shown that tocotrienols are an excellent tool to support healthy cholesterol metabolism and maintain healthy cholesterol levels that are already in the normal range.*

Possible health benefits of tocotrienols

Tocotrienols and stroke-induced Injuries

In the peer-reviewed Stroke journal (Oct 2005), oral supplementation of a natural full spectrum palm tocotrienol complex to spontaneously hypertensive rats led to increased tocotrienols level in the brain. The rats supplemented with tocotrienols showed more protection against stroke-induced injury compared to controls (non-supplemented group). This study demonstrated that oral supplementation of the palm tocotrienol complex acts on key molecular checkpoints (c-Src and 12-Lipoxygenase) to protect against glutamate- and stroke-induced neurodegeneration and ultimately may protect against stroke in vivo. (Sen, CK, et al., “Neuroprotective Properties of the Natural Vitamin E Alpha-Tocotrienol”, Stroke, 2005; 36:e 144 – e 152)

Tocotrienol and reversal of arterial blockage in carotid stenosis patients

Palm tocotrienol complex has been shown in a double-blind placebo controlled human study conducted at the Kenneth Jordan Heart Foundation (NJ,US) to have the ability to reverse arteriosclerosis. Palm tocotrienol complex has the ability to reverse arterial blockage of the carotid artery in Carotid Stenosis patients

Antioxidant activity

Antioxidants include polyphenols, lipoic acid, carotenoids, and tocotrienols. These 'nutraceuticals' have demonstrated greater antioxidant and anti-cancer activity than what has been achieved previously in nutritional protocols and cosmetics formula. The benefits of tocotrienols reach from decreasing platelet aggregation (clumping of blood) to anti-inflammatory action and anti-cancer activity.

Tocotrienols show considerably superior antioxidant properties compared to dl-α-Tocopherol in clinical and experimental studies due to their better distribution in the fatty layers of the cell membrane. The tocotrienol unsaturated side chain allows for a more efficient penetration into saturated fatty layers of the brain and liver. In addition to the free radical scavenging effect, the antioxidant function of tocotrienols is also associated with lowering tumor formation, DNA damage and cell damage. Studies in animals explored the effects of long-term administration of tocotrienols on liver cancer. Supplementation of tocotrienols in rats induced with a potent liver cancer agent demonstrated that the tocotrienols prolonged the impact of the cancer agent. Cell damage to the liver was significant in the untreated group versus the tocotrienol treated group.^{[citation needed]}

Tocotrienols and breast cancer

A study showed that tocotrienols are the components of vitamin E responsible for growth inhibition in human breast cancer cells in vitro as well as in vivo through estrogen-independent mechanisms. Tocotrienols can also affect cell homeostasis, possibly independently of their antioxidant activity.^[1] Anti-cancer effects of α- and γ-tocotrienol have been reported, although δ-tocotrienol was verified to be the most effective tocotrienol in inducing apoptosis (cell death) in estrogen-responsive and estrogen-nonresponsive human breast cancer cells. A daily dose of 30 - 50 mg mixture of α- and γ-tocotrienols can reduce breast cancer risk, and a treatment plan for breast cancer should use higher dosage.^{[citation needed]}

Tocotrienols and prostate cancer

Investigation of the antiproliferative effect of tocotrienols in PC3 and LNCaP prostate cancer cells suggests that the transformation of vitamin E to CEHC is mostly a detoxification mechanism, useful to maintain the malignant properties of prostate cancer cells.^[2]

Tocotrienols and cholesterol reduction

The development of new cholesterol-lowering agents has been given more and more attention by pharmaceutical companies due to the strong relationship between cholesterol and atherosclerosis. Tocotrienols, especially δ- and γ-tocotrienols, were shown to be effective nutritional agents to treat high cholesterol in recent research programs. In particular, γ-tocotrienol appears to act on a specific enzyme called 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme and suppressed the production of this enzyme, which results in less cholesterol being manufactured by liver cells.^{[citation needed]}

The investigation of the cholesterol-lowering effects of tocotrienols in cholesterol-fed rabbits found that the cholesterol in plasma decreased following gamma-tocotrienol treatment (-22%) after 6 weeks. The decrease was mainly attributable to a reduction in LDL cholesterol (23%).^[3]

Tocotrienols and diabetes

Investigation of the intake of antioxidants for its ability to prevent type 2 diabetes shows that vitamin E intake was significantly associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. The relative risk (RR) of type 2 diabetes between the extreme quartiles of the intake was 0.69 (95% CI 0.51-0.94, P for trend=0.003). Intakes of alpha-tocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, delta-tocopherol, and beta-tocotrienol were inversely related to a risk of type 2 diabetes. Thus the development of type 2 diabetes may be reduced by the intake of antioxidants in the diet.^[4]

References

1. ^ Nesaretnam K, Ambra R, Selvaduray KR, et al. (2004). Tocotrienol-rich fraction from palm oil and gene expression in human breast cancer cells. ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 1031: 143-157.
2. ^ Conte C, Floridi A, Aisa C, et al. (2004). Gamma-Tocotrienol metabolism and antiproliferative effect in prostate cancer cells. ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 1031: 391-394.
3. ^ Hasselwander O, Kramer K, Hoppe PP, et al. (2002). Effects of feeding various tocotrienol sources on plasma lipids and aortic atherosclerotic lesions in cholesterol-fed rabbits. FOOD RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 35 (2-3): 245-251.
4. ^ Montonen J, Knekt P, Jarvinen R, et al. (2004). Dietary antioxidant intake and risk of type 2 diabetes. DIABETES CARE 27 (2): 362-366.