Vitamin E Helps Liver
Vitamin E Helps Liver.. Is vitamin E a new weapon against hepatic complications of obesity and diabetes? This is what researchers believe at a Medical School in Cleveland, Ohio.
The experimental study, which involved scientists from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and Cornell University, has shown that vitamin E can prevent fat accumulation in the liver related to obesity and overweight, in mice.
‘The implications of this work could have a direct impact on the lives of almost 65 million Americans who are at risk of developing liver disease related to obesity in their lives’ according to one of the professors of nutrition and pharmacology at Case Western Reserve, in Ohio.
It was by chance that researchers have identified the effects of vitamin E. They studied the effects of vitamin E deficiency on the central nervous system when they realized that the deficient mice had a non-alcoholic steatohepatitis- NASH at an advanced stage, a complication of obesity characterized by accumulation of fat in the liver, which is associated with oxidative stress and inflammation.
This is the most severe form of nonalcoholic liver disease and a major cause of cirrhosis that can lead to liver failure and liver cancer.
Studies in humans have recently shown that vitamin E may improve some symptoms of NASH in humans, implying that there is a connection between vitamin E deficiency and liver disease. To test this hypothesis, the researchers studied mice that lack a protein that regulates the level of vitamin E in the body.
They found that these mice have increased oxidative stress, with fat deposits in the liver and signs of liver damage. When these animals were given vitamin E supplements, the majority of symptoms of NASH were prevented in these animals, confirming the link between vitamin E deficiency and liver disorders.
These results could indeed have a significant impact on public health. The vast majority of adults in the United States and other developed countries, such as Canada, France , Switzerland, France, Australia do not consume optimal doses of vitamin E.
For adults, the recommended dietary allowance for vitamin E is 12 mg per day in France while it is 15 mg in Canada and the United States and Canada. Vegetable oils , nuts , green leafy vegetables are a good source of vitamin E.
There is currently no treatment for NASH, making it one of the main causes of liver transplant. Overweight and obese people and diabetics have a high risk of NASH . A simple and affordable dietary intervention may benefit these people at risk.
Return from Vitamin E Helps Liver to Glycemic Index home page
