Reputable
American researchers claim that even large amounts of natural Vitamin E do not
benefit
established
atherosclerosis. But their study do not
reveal it. The participants got almost
no Vitamin E.
Perhaps somebody have heard about
the praised American HOPE study from 2000.
It was to reveal that natural Vitamin E would not make any difference for
people with atherosclerosis. This was a
disappointment, and with it the issue
could then have been dismissed.
That is not how
it went. The HOPE study, which lasted
4,5 years and included 9,000 participants was prolonged with 2,5
years. They wanted to be absolutely
sure, they said. In the follow-up study
called HOPE-TOO only 4,000 people participated. Some did not want to participate, others had died, and others
only wanted to be
examined, but
did not want any medication.
Half of the
participants took 400 units natural Vitamin E daily (alpha-tocopherol), while
the rest took placebo. They certainly
had serious atherosclerosis: Every
other one had had a heart attack, just as many suffered from angina pectoris
(atherosclerosis ), and more than every third had diabetes.
The HOPE study
showed that Vitamin E did not cause more or less cancer, more or less heart
attacks, strokes, deaths or anything else.
HOPE-TOO showed the same result, though with a single addition: Those who took Vitamin E slightly more often
had heart failure; that is to say a decreased functioning of the heart.
The difference was so small that it could very well have been
coincidental, even though it was statistically significant. Nevertheless the authors took the opportunity
to strongly warn against dietary supplements.
But yet they might as well have taken the opportunity to recommend them.
They found that Vitamin E protected against lung cancer!
This finding, which was also statistically significant, was
rejected, as an “error.” This
conclusion was preceded by a lengthy discussion, in which reference is made to
studies with beta-carotene, which as we all know, is something
completely different.
No
clothes on.
But there is a far more serious
surprise, which totally overshadows this biased opinion: During the whole study
the participants did not have any more Vitamin E in their blood than all other
people, who do not take supplements. The average value was 17,6
μmol/l. The normal value is 12 –
42. Despite the Vitamin E they only
just managed to get
their minimal need covered.
Before the study the participants
actually had even lower values, averaging 10 μmol/l. This fits well with the fact that they were
seriously ill, overweight heart patients who were kept on a low fat diet. A low
fat diet may lead to deficiency of vitamin E.
Here we may also find the
explanation of the low blood values. Vitamin E can only be absorbed from the intestine
when fat is present. If you eat non-fat
foods you might as well not take Vitamin E, even when you take 20 – 40 times
the recommended dosage.
One is reminded of the Emperor’s
New Clothes. HOPE-TOO has no clothes
on. It claims to examine the effects of
mega doses of Vitamin E, but the participants are only seemingly getting
it. Strangely enough nobody has pointed
out this almost ridiculous mistake before. In particular one wonders, why the authors themselves have not
seen this mistake. Could it be that they do not know the normal values of
Vitamin E in the blood?
This is not completely out of the
question although it sounds strange. There are many examples of superficiality
in scientific research. You do not have
to look any further than the official commentary in the same issue of JAMA, which
published the HOPE-TOO study. Here doctor Greg Brown by and large agrees with
the conclusion of the study.
He was also in charge of a similar
study from 2001, which was supposed to show if antioxidants prevent
atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries. This study concluded that
antioxidants did not prevent atherosclerosis, even though the figures
showed in black and white that the
antioxidants halved the growth of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries,
compared
to placebo.
References:
(Newsletter translated from Danish)
For more information:
Claus Hancke, M.D.
Chairman of the Vitality Council: www.vitalraadet.dk
Institute for Orthomolecular Medicine: www.iom.dk
Lyngby Hovedgade 37
DK - 2800 Kgs. Lyngby
Denmark
Tlf.: + 45 4588 0900
Fax: + 45 4588 0947