Despite what some of us were told in the past, vitamin E is vital to our brain health.

Suzy Cohen, RPH notes that in the past, a large number of clinical trials used “synthetic (man-made) vitamin E on trial participants.” Unsurprisingly, few benefits were revealed.

Synthetic version of vitamin E contain tiny amounts of the whole molecule of vitamin E named “ALPHA” tocopherol. So results were, of course, pretty dismal.

Cohen asks, “What do you think happens to humans when you give them lab-created compounds that do not match what naturally occurs in nature?” Not much.

According to Cohen, vitamin E is:

  • Essential for optimal health.
  • A fat-soluble nutrient that builds fatty tissue needed by your heart, pancreas, liver and brain.
  • Vital for your brain health and recovery, if injured.

Here’s what you should know to get the most out of vitamin E:

  1. Stay away from vitamin E that lists  “dl-alpha tocopherol” as an ingredient. It is synthetic, and does your body no good.
  2. Natural E  is listed by the d- prefix only (not dl-), and is the form your cells are looking for.
  3. Nearly all vitamin E formulas contain one of the necessary eight isomers; however, only natural E contains all compounds.
  4. What  compounds are you missing?
  • alpha tocopherol ( the natural, “d-” form)
  • beta tocopherol
  • delta tocopherol
  • gamma tocopherol
  • alpha tocotrienol
  • beta tocotrienol
  • delta tocotrienol
  • and gamma tocotrienol

You need them all!  

The tocopherols should not be divided. Insufficient supplements providing only the alpha depletes the beta, delta, and gamma already in you body.

The tocotrienols, according to Cohen, contain “very strong antioxidant activity. Tocotrienols are 50 – 70 times more potent than tocopherols so they penetrate deeper into fatty tissues like your brain and liver.”

Studies support natural vitamin E’s importance to cholesterol management, resolution for clotting problems, help for breast and prostate cancers, as well as brain health. Tocotrienols also protect against inflammation, and disease-causing free radicals.

Read the full article here: The Truth About Natural Vitamin E (as opposed to other kinds) – Suzy Cohen, RPh