What Are The Health Benefits Of Vitamin E And In What Store Can You Find It?

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble essential vitamin, and it may protect the cells in your body against dangerous free radicals. Although deficiency is rare, you may benefit from taking additional amounts of vitamin E, but remember to consult your doctor first. To get the most benefits from vitamin E, take it with food for better absorption.

Daily Value

The daily value for a nutrient is an estimated amount of that nutrient that a healthy adult on a 2,000-calorie diet should try to get each day. The daily value for vitamin E is 30 international units, or IU. The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine chose this value as an amount that is likely to prevent hemolytic anemia, an indication of unhealthy red blood cells, in nearly all healthy adults.

Potential Health Benefits

Adequate or high intakes of vitamin E may reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease and cataracts, and it may be beneficial in diabetes because it improves glucose regulation. Some of the benefits of vitamin E may come from taking amounts beyond the daily value, but be aware that a potential side effect is hemorrhage due to decreased blood clotting. Do not have more than the tolerable upper limit of 1,500 IU per day

Food Sources and Forms

Natural sources of vitamin E include nuts, peanuts, spinach, avocados and plant-based oils such as canola, safflower, soybean, olive and corn oil. It is also in seeds and tomato paste. The active form of vitamin E in your body is alpha-tocopherol, and most of the vitamin E you get from food is from alpha-tocopherol. In dietary supplements, vitamin E may be in the form of alpha-tocopherol succinate or acetate.

Dietary Supplements

You can find vitamin E supplements where you normally purchase your dietary supplements, such as a grocery or drug store, a pharmacy or a nutritional supplement store. A standard daily multivitamin or multivitamin and mineral supplement most likely contains about 30 IU of vitamin E, or 100 percent of the daily value. If you want higher amounts of vitamin E, you might consider a straight vitamin E supplement instead of a multivitamin. The Food and Drug Administration does not regulate dietary supplements, and you should discuss all supplements with your doctor before taking them.