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What a daily multivitamin does for your DNA |
What a daily multivitamin does for your DNA
By Dr. Patrick Massey | Columnist
May 18, 2009 - Does taking a daily multivitamin result in better health and longevity?
About two years ago, one of my articles described a study correlating the length of a person's DNA, his or her internal, or cellular, age and the person's health. The bottom line was that regardless of the person's actual age, shorter DNA correlated with an older internal age and longer DNA indicated a younger internal age.
Every time a cell replicates, it needs to make a new set of DNA. However, with each replication, a small piece of DNA is lost. This loss of DNA happens at the ends of the strands in a part of the DNA that does not code for any genes. These ends of the DNA are called telomeres. There are only a limited number of cellular replications that happen before important DNA is lost and the cell dies.
Imagine a spool of movie film. There is always blank film at the beginning of the movie and at the end of the movie. Now envision that a small piece of the blank film is removed every time the movie is played. If you played the movie enough times, all of the blank film would be lost and pieces of the movie itself would vanish.
This is similar to what happens to DNA and telomeres. The longer the telomere, the longer the cell can replicate. Telomere length has been hypothesized to be key to health and longevity.
Therefore, longer telomeres are better than shorter telomeres. In humans, it has been shown that telomere length can be improved through lifestyle changes such as stress reduction and exercise. In a recent study at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, taking a daily multivitamin was associated with significantly longer telomeres.
Although this was a small study, only involving 58 women, the improvements in telomere length were statistically significant. The average increase in telomere length was 5.1 percent, and that is a lot. In addition, vitamin E and vitamin C seemed to be most important. High dietary intake of vitamin C and vitamin E had a greater effect on telomere length than other vitamins.
The study is also important because it underscores the effect of good nutrition on health. There is ample medical research indicating that the average American diet is woefully deficient in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients and that 10 percent to 15 percent of Americans do not get the minimum recommended amount of vitamins and minerals.
Several years ago, the Journal of the American Medical Association published research detailing the state of nutrition in American and is was strongly recommended that everybody have a daily multivitamin. With the recent research on telomere length and vitamins, there is increasing evidence that a good multivitamin may have a significant affect on health and longevity.
• Patrick B. Massey, M.D., Ph.D., is medical director for alternative and complementary medicine for the Alexian Brothers Medical Network.
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E for emerging nutrient? The growth of vitamin E tocotrienols
By Stephen Daniells, 20-May-2009
Speaking at Vitafoods 2009 in Geneva about vitamin E tocotrienols, Dr. Barrie Tan explained the differences between vitamin E in its tocopherol and tocotrienol form.
“In terms of benefits to the body, [tocotrienols] would protect a larger area of membrane in a cell, than a tocopherol that stays stationary in one place.”
Awareness of the tocotrienol form of vitamin E tocotrienols, obtained from palm, rice oil, or annatto, is increasing slowly, and clear health benefits are emerging.
“Scientists are making points to differentiate functions of tocotrienols to those of tocopherols. The three areas that delineate the tocotrienol functions from tocopherols are cancer, cardiovascular benefits, and diabetes.”
(Read article and view video here) |
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More women than men dying of heart disease |
More women than men dying of heart disease
Tue July 07, 2009
According to the most recent data collected on heart-related deaths, 50.5 percent of all deaths caused by heart attack, stroke and heart failure occur in women - slightly higher than the 49.5 percent in men. While this may not seem like a significant difference, Dr. Jack Tu, senior scientist at Toronto's Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences says that this represents a "seismic" shift in what has always been considered a disease of middle-aged men.
The reasons for the spike are unclear, but scientists believe there are three key factors. The number of women who smoke is now equal to the percentage of male smokers. There are disparities in the care that women and men receive, primarily because the medical profession has not typically considered women at high risk for heart disease. In addition, symptoms of heart disease in women and men can be quite different - and in fact, the Heart and Stroke Foundation is currently conducting an education campaign that points out these differences.
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What Form of Vitamin E is Best? |
What Form of Vitamin E is Best?
By: Dr. George Obikoya
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
There is no denying that vitamin E is extraordinarily beneficial for your body in many different ways. Researchers discovered Vitamin E about eighty years ago, but only in the past few years have we started to appreciate its power as an antioxidant.
Research studies have shown that Vitamin E fights oxygen free radicals, and helps stave off diseases and enhance our overall health. Yet most of us do not get even the recommended daily allowance of 30 International Units. Unless you want to drink two quarts of corn oil and eat a pound of sunflower seeds everyday, the only way to increase your Vitamin E intake is with supplements, preferably in liquid form due to better absorption than pill form. Vitamin E deactivates potentially damaging oxygen free radicals, and prevents heart diseases and other related complications. People with exiting heart disease who take Vitamin E have a 77% lower risk of subsequent (non-fatal) heart attack that those who do not.
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