Why Is Vitamin E Important In Memory?

While most vitamins refer to a specific compound, vitamin E is a term used to refer to 8 different fat-soluble compounds with powerful antioxidant properties. These compounds can be found in both nutritional supplements and food sources. In addition to their antioxidant properties, these compounds are associated with a variety of neurologic and physiologic benefits, some of which may play a role in memory.

Tocopherols and Tocotrienols

Tocopherols and tocotrienols are the two main classes of compounds that are referred to as vitamin E. Each of these groups contains four varieties, commonly known as alpha, beta, delta and gamma tocopherols and tocotrienols. While gamma tocopherols are the most widely available in foods, alpha tocopherols are the most biologically important due to their nutritional availability and range of uses in your body. Although much less is known about tocotrienols, they are potentially more potent antioxidants than alpha tocopherol and may have neuroprotective effects. Chandan Sen and colleagues at The Ohio State University Medical Center suggest such a role in a 2006 study but acknowledge that too little is known about tocotrienols to make any strong conclusions.

Antioxidants and ROS

Antioxidants are compounds that bind and remove free radicals from your body. Free radicals are compounds that contain an extra electron, with this electron potentially causing damage to healthy cells. By reacting with oxygen, free radicals form reactive oxygen species. Much of the cellular damage and health issues associated with free radicals arises from ROS. Vitamin E compounds in general, and alpha tocopherol in particular, limit the damage caused by free radicals by preventing the production of ROS from fat metabolism.

ROS and Memory Improvement

Despite the damage caused by ROS to healthy cells, ROS may play a role in improving and facilitating memory. Cynthia Massaad of the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and Eric Klann or New York University support this function of ROS in a 2011 review of the literature. These researchers point out that ROS play an important role in both neural plasticity, or the ability of your brain to adapt to environmental and learning pressures, and memory. By serving as signaling molecules and transferring information between cells, ROS are vital to normal cognitive functioning. As such, vitamin E compounds may inhibit memory due to their role in preventing the production of ROS.

ROS and Memory Impairment

Despite highlighting ROS' role in promoting memory and brain plasticity, Cynthia Massaad and Eric Klann point out that ROS is generally classified as neurotoxic, due to the fact that ROS cause damage to proteins and enzymes essential to healthy brain functioning. However, these researchers point out that these negative effects of ROS may occur only at excessively high concentrations, with normal concentrations of ROS having solely beneficial effects on memory. This suggests that there is a healthy balance between antioxidants and ROS. By meeting your recommended daily intake of vitamin E, you may help to reduce the amount of ROS in your body, thus reducing the potential damage caused by excessive ROS.

Vitamin E and Alzheimer's Disease

Due to the mixed effects of ROS on memory and neural plasticity, vitamin E may play contradictory roles in preventing the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. This suggests that vitamin E may both reduce and increase the symptoms and speed of progression of the disease; however,most evidence suggests that vitamin E has a limited, albeit positive role. In a 2009 study, a team headed by Joshua Sonnen of the University of Washington note that past research has either found no effect of vitamin E on Alzheimer's or some positive effects. This suggests that vitamin E may not play a damaging role by preventing the production of ROS. Instead of finding any evidence for vitamin E reducing memory, these researchers found that alpha tocopherol may have powerfully beneficial effects on memory. By supplementing your diet with vitamin C, which enhances the biological activity of alpha tocopherol, these researchers found that you can enhance your memory and reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. As these findings suggest, vitamin E appears to have solely beneficial effects on memory and cognitive functioning.