3 Questions

[mishb]

Maybe for this reason; Three doctors told me to stop taking Vitamin E too:


" Participants taking vitamin E, however, were 13% more likely to experience, and 21% more likely to be hospitalized for, heart failure, a statistically significant but unexpected finding not reported in other large studies.".....

"Furthermore, use of vitamin E was associated with a significantly increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke."

Wow, that has just blown me away.
I'm glad she told me to avoid it ......... but oh my gosh .....wow

[Sangye]

What's the source for that, drz?

[Al]

What's the source for that, drz?

I looked it up, Sangye. This seems to be drz' source:

Vitamin E

[mishb]

I looked it up, Sangye. This seems to be drz' source:

Vitamin E

I found that same source and was really surprised that it interacts with chemotherapy and also nsaids and blood thinning drugs like warfarin etc. as well
......It has literally blown me away and I don't think I will question my Rheumy again for a little while at least (she did well)

[Sangye]

This is very typical of medical research of nutritional supplements and foods. It's very common for them to refer to any form of E as "Vitamin E" as if splitting apart a nutrient or synthesizing one is just as good as the real deal. The end product of such research is wholly unreliable. For example, the study looking at the relationship between "Vitamin E" and cardiovascular health used a synthetic piece of the vitamin E complex. So it shouldn't come as a big surprise that if you put that synthesized nutrient into the body it doesn't prevent disease.

Putting all that aside, let's pretend they're all talking about vitamin E in its natural state.

As far as interacting with chemo, the article states there has been no randomized review of studies that would enable them to reach such a conclusion. Also, note that they are talking about chemo for cancer patients, which is used for a different reason (to kill cells) and at much higher doses. Chemo is used to treat Wegs only to take advantage of its toxic side effect: immunosuppression. If anything, Weggies need more antioxidants to manage their high levels of inflammation and cellular damage.

As far as the anticoagulant effect of vitamin E... The article explained that taking large doses of vitamin E is the concern. While vitamin E has anticoagulant properties, they are neither potent nor harmful. Weggies are 23% more likely to develop blood clots. Given that vitamin E both "thins" the blood (slightly) and is anti-inflammatory, it is a good nutrient to help prevent blood clots. Also, if a nutrient has anticoagulant properties and is taken in consistent, normal doses the warfarin dose can be adjusted downward to compensate. I take fish oil which also has very small anticoagulant properties. It allows me to take a smaller amount of warfarin. That's a GOOD thing-- taking more of a nutrient and less of a drug to achieve the desired effect of the drug while receiving the wide-ranging benefits of the nutrient.

It's ironic that doctors tell patients not to take a supplement because it accomplishes the same thing as a drug, while they simultaneously argue that nutritional supplements are useless.

[mishb]

Thankyou for explaining it all in easy to read terms.......very much appreciated.
It takes some of my WOW, thank goodness factor out of it

[Al]

Thankyou for explaining it all in easy to read terms.......very much appreciated.
It takes some of my WOW, thank goodness factor out of it

Sangye's discussion points up a couple of things: The mixed agendas and limitations of reasearch--or, in some cases, "research". It also brings home the care one needs to take when analyzing the claims of both the purveyors and the detractors of supplements (and, of course, pharmaceutical products). In the specific case of "Vitamin E", much needs to be unpacked before a meaningful assessment can be made. To begin with, there are many forms of Vitamin E; they do not have a uniform set of properties. Then, too, just like any ingested matter, whether food, drink, or medicine, there are optimal amounts for a therapeutic effect--and amounts that are definitely too much. This is easy to understand in principle; the problem comes in translating that into specific doses. That should depend on many variables, though, in practice, most variables are ignored. The thing about nutritional supplements in general is that there is a large separation between the ideal dosage and too much--unlike medicines, which usually have a much tighter tolerance.

Al

[Sangye]

Thankyou for explaining it all in easy to read terms.......very much appreciated.
It takes some of my WOW, thank goodness factor out of it

LOL You're welcome!