09/26/00 37 Million Americans Take Vitamin E:

37 Million Americans Take Vitamin E:

New FANSA Report Reveals What Consumers Need To Know

September 26, 2000

Contact: Maret G. Traber, PhD
maret.traber@orst.edu
541/737-7977

Chicago - Vitamin E is indispensable for good health, helping to lower the risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Vitamin E protects blood cells, the nervous system and skeletal muscles, and it may help prevent cataracts.

A recent survey* examining the use of vitamin and mineral supplements by adults revealed that over 37 million Americans take vitamin E supplements every day. The Food and Nutrition Science Alliance (FANSA) developed a report specifically for consumers, What Consumers Need to Know about Vitamin E. "FANSA urges everyone to become better acquainted with this very important and powerful compound, and to make sure their daily intake is sufficient to preserve and improve their health," noted Maret Traber, associate professor in the department of nutrition and food management at Oregon State University and chair of the FANSA Task Force on Vitamin E that developed the report.

FANSA is a partnership of four professional societies with more than 100,000 total members who have joined forces to speak with one voice on food and nutrition issues. The members of FANSA are the American Dietetic Association, American Society for Clinical Nutrition, American Society for Nutritional Sciences and the Institute of Food Technologists.

FANSA’s report comes on the heels of new recommendations from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies that raised the recommended dietary allowance for several nutrients including vitamin E and for the first time set maximum limits on how much vitamin E is safe to consume.

"Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that protects the body’s cells from oxidation damage caused by ‘free radicals’ that contribute to the development of health problems such as cancer and heart disease," said Traber.

Free radicals are highly reactive substances that result from normal metabolism and from exposure to environmental factors like cigarette smoke and ultraviolet light. They cause cellular damage by attacking the body’s cell membranes, proteins and DNA.

Vitamin E works with other antioxidants such as vitamin C and selenium to help protect the body from damage caused by these free radicals. In addition Traber noted that new scientific studies indicate vitamin E may help lower the risk of chronic conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

Researchers currently are studying the effects of vitamin E on age-related eye diseases, such as cataracts, and research suggests vitamin E may play a beneficial role in the nervous system.

"While the potential benefits of vitamin E are very promising, they have not been proven conclusively," according to the FANSA report. "Much remains unknown and under investigation."

According to the FANSA report, people’s daily requirements for vitamin E vary with age, gender and overall health status, as well as the amount of polyunsaturated fats consumed.

The Institute of Medicine recommends that people consume 15 milligrams daily of the natural form of vitamin E, alpha tocopherol. American adults on average consume about 8 to 12 milligrams daily.

The FANSA report also contains a chart showing the vitamin E content of many different types of foods. The most-popular sources of vitamin E are vegetable oils and foods containing those oils, nuts, sunflower seeds and green leafy vegetables.

The entire FANSA report - five pages in length - can be viewed on http://www.ift.org/resource/news/news_rel/FANSA/vitaminE.shtml or obtained from any of the FANSA organizations.

* Random survey - 2000 adults - Spring 1999 for Rodale by Princeton Survey Research Associates.