VITAMIN E

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin present in many plant foods. It is an antioxidant and its main function is to prevent the oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids. Its absence causes abnormal functions and structures of mitochondria, cell membrane etc.

It has been proved in experiments on lower animals that deficiency of vitamin E can cause sterility in male and female. The deficiency causes degeneration of germinal epithelium in the testes of males while its lack is also responsible for resorption of fetus in females. Its “anti-sterility” function in humans is not known exactly.

Its deficiency also affects the performance of muscle cells and renal tubular cells.

Deficiency Symptoms

Few important symptoms of vitamin E deficiency include:

·         Myopathy (muscle weakness that leads to muscle cramp and spasm).

·         Skeletal Myopathy (weakness of bones).

·         Retinopathy (damage to retina of eye).

·         Ataxia (lack of coordination of muscle movements).

·         Peripheral Neuropathy (disease of nerves leads to impair function of organ, gland, sensation or movement).

RDI & Dietary Sources

Recommended Daily Intake of vitamin E for people of age 14 and above is 15mg/day. The RDI reduces with lesser age.

Vitamin E is especially present in plants oil. Rich sources are wheat germ oil (150mg/100g), sunflower oil, safflower oil, olive oil, nuts & nuts oils like almonds and hazel nuts. Good sources are green, leafy vegetables including spinach, turnip, beet greens etc. while moderate amount of vitamin E is present in sesame oil, pumpkin, mangoes, tomatoes, papaya, lettuce etc. It is also present in few animal foods such as butter. 

Excess of Vitamin E

The tolerable upper limit (UL) of vitamin E is 1000mg/day. Overdose of vitamin E is called Hypervitaminosis E, responsible for deficiency of Vitamin K that can lead to bleeding problems. Overdose of vitamin E can be life-threatening if it combines with drugs like aspirin.