Vitamin Information Center

There is plenty of information out there about different things that are available to cure wrinkles. One of them is Vitamin C that you can get from various foods including oranges. There is quite a bit of research that indicates Vitamin C may be just what women are looking for as a very natural way to get rid of those wrinkles.

Back in the early 1970’s there was a significant study done on women. More than 4,000 of them spanning from 40 to 74 years of age were evaluated with their skin problems. They were then closely monitored and what they consumed was tracked. It became apparent that a person’s diet definitely has plenty to do with the aging of their skin.

One important determination from that study was that women consuming large amounts of Vitamin C had healthier looking skin than those that didn’t. They have fewer wrinkles and their skin was smoother. It was reasonable for them to assume that Vitamin C does slow down the aging process. This is due to the antioxidants found in it. They help the body to naturally produce more collagen. The Linoleic Acid that they contain also helps to prevent the skin from drying out.

The thought of adding more Vitamin C to your diet is easy right? But most people don’t want to consume oranges all day either. There is also the fact that fresh oranges and even orange juice tend to be expensive. There are some other alternatives though because many other types of fruit also contain plenty of Vitamin C. Some of them you may enjoy include kiwi and papaya. They are also found in certain vegetables including broccoli and peppers.

In order to get the most Vitamin C though from them you need to avoid boiling them. You need to eat them raw. You also need to consume Vitamin C all day long instead of at one sitting. That way your body is able to absorb as much of it as possible. Just think adding more Vitamin C to your diet is an easy way to control wrinkles.

There is no reason to let those wrinkles form on your skin and make you look older than you really are. You also don’t have to pay for expensive treatments such as Botox or a face lift. Consuming Vitamin C is a natural way for you to control the look of your skin. You can also do it at home so no one has to know you are fighting wrinkles. They will just be jealous that you have skin they would love to have.

So there you go.

Consuming so much Vitamin C will also help to boost your immune system. This means you will be less likely to become ill with common ailments such as the flu and colds. Your overall dietary intake will likely improve as well so you will have more energy and you may even lose some weight. Overall, this could be the tip you need to look and feel much better than you have in a long time.

Stacey Williams helps you to find the best wrinkle cream and antiaging cream to turn back the clock on your skin’s appearance. See this review of Athena 7 Minute Lift wrinkle cream at his review site here. Does this ‘face lift in a jar’ known as Athena 7 Minute Lift really work? Find out right here.

People who take vitamin supplements may not benefit their health and could increase the risk of premature death, according to a new report.

Danish researchers found that antioxidants do not prolong life expectancy as some may hope and that beta-carotene, vitamin A and vitamin E may actually increase the risk of death.

They did not uncover evidence that vitamin C and selenium have either positive or negative effects.

Their findings are based on a review of data from 67 randomised trials that involved just under a quarter of a million people and were released today by the Cochrane Library.

“We could find no evidence to support taking antioxidant supplements to reduce the risk of dying earlier in healthy people or patients with various diseases,” said Goran Bjelakovic, who performed the systematic review at the Copenhagen Trial Unit at the Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark.

“Regarding these antioxidants we need more data from randomised trials. The bottom line is that current evidence does not support the use of antioxidant supplements in the general healthy population or in patients with certain diseases.”

Commenting on the review, the UK’s Food Standards Agency said: “Most people should be able to get all the nutrients they need by eating a varied and balanced diet.

“If consumers do choose to take supplements, it is important they are informed and they may also wish to also consult with their GP. For some vitamins and minerals, taking too much or taking them for too long can cause harmful effects.

Editor’s note:  A recent study found that use of vitamin E supplements was not associated with reduced risk of lung cancer among the general population. Among current smokers, taking vitamin E supplements may even dramatically increase the risk of the cancer up to 28%.  The following is compiled by a foodconsumer.org editor for those who want to know more about this vitamin. The key point is that vitamin E by definition is essential to your health and you should not avoid it.  The best source is of course food. But when you take a supplement, make sure you are taking the natural form of vitamin E.  Read on for detail.

Vitamin E: What you need to know

What is vitamin E?

Vitamin E is a group of eight nutrients including four tocopherols, (alpha-, beta-, gamma- and delta-) and four tocotrienols (alpha-, beta-, gamma- and delta-). Alpha-tocopherol is the only form of vitamin E that is active in the body.

What does vitamin E do in the body?

The form of vitamin E most known today is alpha-tocopherol, which is believed to be used in the body mainly as an antioxidant. Antioxidants are expected to neutralize free radials endogenously and oxidative environmental pollutants.

Alpha-tocopherol is fat-soluble and helps protect against oxidation of fatty components in the cell membrane and also protect fats in low density liporpoteins (LDLs), which transport cholesterol from the liver to the tissue of the body. Oxidation of LDLs could lead to development of cardiovascular diseases.

Alpha-tocopherol also affects some enzymes and the production of immune and inflammatory cells among other things.

The functions of other forms of vitamin E are not as well understood.

What are the consequences of vitamin E deficiency?

Vitamin E deficiency could be caused either by low intake of the vitamin or by some conditions that disable the alpha-tocopherol transfer protein or by some problem with fat absorption.  Those who can’t absorb fat such as patients with cystic fibrosis or cholesterol liver disease would have a problem with absorbing this vitamin from the diet, potentially leading to vitamin E deficiency.

The main consequences of severe vitamin E deficiency are neurological symptoms such as ataxia (impaired balance and coordination), peripheral neuropathy (injury to sensory nerves, myopathy (muscle weakness) and pigmented retinopathy (damage to the eye retina). People who experience these symptoms should be checked for their vitamin E status.  Children are more sensitive and thus more vulnerable to vitamin E deficiency and they can quickly show neurological symptoms while adults may not develop symptoms due to the deficiency for 10 to 20 years.

Vitamin E deficiency due to low intake of this nutrient rarely results in any reported symptoms.  In effect, vitamin E deficiency due to low dietary intake is rare although suboptimal intake of this nutrient is found common in the U.S. population. A study known as the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III (NHANES III) showed 27 % of whites, 41% of blacks, 28% Mexican Americans and 32% of others have less than 20 micromoles/liter, a level of vitamin E that is believed to pose a risk for cardiovascular disease.

What is the recommended dietary allowance for vitamin E?

The RDA set by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine in 2000 varies with age.  The RDA for both adult males and females is 15 mg or 22.5 IU per day.  Pregnancy does not require extra vitamin E, but breastfeeding mother need 19 mg or 28.5 IU per day.

What are the conditions or diseases on which vitamin E may have an effect?

Observational studies have showed an association between increased vitamin E intake and decreased risk of myocardial infarction or heart attack or death from heart disease in both men and women.  Studies also found plasma levels of alpha-tocopherol were inversely linked to the severity of carotid atherosclerosis. But trials often failed to see any protective effect of this vitamin on heart attacks and death.

Observational studies also showed vitamin E may protect against cataracts, but interventional trials did not find any protective effect when 400 IU of vitamin E was used for 7 years.

Alpha-tocopherol was also found to boost the immune response. One study showed 200 mg of synthetic-tocopherol daily for a few months increased production of antibodies in response to hepatitis B vaccine and tetanus vaccine in elderly people.

Because free radials are believed to cause damage to DNA, neutralization of these compounds by antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin E is believed to have a preventative effect against cancer.  But many studies showed that vitamin E supplements were not linked to reduced risk of cancer.  In a recent study, vitamin E supplementation for ten years was found even to increase the risk of lung cancer in current smokers.

What are the foods that contain high levels of vitamin E?

The major dietary sources of alpha-tocopherol include vegetable oils such as olive, sunflower and safflower oils; nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts and peanuts; whole grains products; and green leafy vegetables such as spinach.  All eight forms of vitamin E occur naturally in foods.

Those who would use vitamin E supplements should check and see if the form they buy is natural or synthetic.  They may better off buying and using only the natural form.  The synthetic form of vitamin is biochemically not usable by the body and potentially cause a physiologic problem in the body.  The natural form in food (not the fortified) is the form of the isomer, RRR-alpha-tocopherol.  In supplemental vitamin E, dl-alpha-tocopherol or all-rac-alpha-tocopherol means the vitamin is synthetic.

There are some other forms of vitamin E or derivatives used in supplements.  Foodconsumer.org recommends use of the natural form d-alpha-tocopherol.

What are the possible side effects of vitamin E?

Vitamin E is fat-soluble and too much of its intake through supplements may cause some side effects. But the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine believes 1000 mg or 1500 IU of alpha-tocopherol per day can be tolerated by adults aged 19 or older.  The dietary intake of this vitamin rarely poses any risk.

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