What are the benefits of vitamin E?

Wenn Sie sich ausgewogen und gesund ernähren, werden Sie wahrscheinlich alle Vorteile von Vitamin E erhalten, die Ihr Körper braucht.

Dietitians Helen Bond and Clare Thornton-Wood from the British Dietetic Association (BDA) explain what vitamin E is and why your body needs it.

Was ist Vitamin E?

Wie die meisten Vitamine ist auch Vitamin E eine fettlösliche Verbindung. Fettlösliche Vitamine werden zusammen mit Fetten aus der Nahrung aufgenommen und im Fettgewebe und in der Leber gespeichert.

Vorteile von Vitamin E

Thornton-Wood says one of vitamin E’s key roles is as an antioxidant, helping protect your body’s cells from damage caused by unstable molecules - known as free radicals.

"These are produced by pollutants such as cigarette smoke, air pollution, and UV rays from the sun, and also by your body itself when food is digested," she explains.

"For this reason, vitamin E is important for maintaining a healthy immune system and overall health and wellbeing."

Nehme ich genug Vitamin E zu mir?

Like all things good for you, vitamin E is found in many healthy foods. If your body is not getting enough vitamin E - it's usually linked to a poor diet.

Bond notes that most people are able to get enough vitamin E in their diet.

"It can also be stored in the body, so it's not essential to be consumed in large amounts every day," she says. "So, a deficiency is rare in this country, even in people with a chronic malabsorption of fats - a condition where your body can't absorb fats properly."

In the UK it is recommended adults consume 3-15 milligrams of vitamin E daily.

Welche Lebensmittel enthalten Vitamin E?

"It is not difficult to obtain all the vitamin E benefits you need each day from eating a balanced diet," she adds. "Any not utilised that day can be stored by your body for future use."

Ist ein Vitamin-E-Mangel möglich?

Ein Mangel an Vitamin E ist zwar unwahrscheinlich, aber es gibt Menschen, die generell anfälliger für Vitaminmangel sind und eine höhere Zufuhr von Vitamin E benötigen.

Thornton-Wood explains that vitamin E deficiency is rare and is generally linked to diseases where digestion or absorption of fat is an issue - such as in Crohn's disease and cystic fibrosis.

"In extreme cases a lack of vitamin E can cause damage to your nerves and muscles," she says. "This could result in loss of feeling in your arms and legs, weakness of your muscles and issues with your vision.

"Ein Mangel an Vitamin E kann auch zu einer geschwächten Immunfunktion führen.

Muss ich Vitamin-E-Präparate einnehmen?

Vitamin E supplements are generally not necessary for most people. Thornton-Wood advises that vitamin E is much better obtained from food.

"This will then provide a range of other nutrients such as fibre, and additional vitamins and minerals," she says.

Bond fügt hinzu, dass es zwar Hinweise auf gesundheitliche Vorteile im Zusammenhang mit hohen Dosen von Vitamin E gibt, dass aber noch nicht geklärt ist, ob eine Supplementierung mit Vitamin E notwendig ist.

She notes: "High doses of vitamin E have been implicated in promoting health and protecting against many health conditions including Alzheimer's disease.

"Bislang gibt es jedoch nicht genügend schlüssige Beweise dafür, dass die tägliche Einnahme hoher Dosen von Vitamin-E-Präparaten unerlässlich ist. Stattdessen sollte man sich um eine gesunde, ausgewogene und abwechslungsreiche Ernährung bemühen, die viele Lebensmittel enthält, die von Natur aus reich an Vitamin E sind."

Vitamin E-Nebenwirkungen

Wie bei allen Dingen im Leben kann es zu einem Überschuss an Vitamin E kommen, was allerdings äußerst selten vorkommt.

Thornton-Wood warns that extreme amounts of vitamin E can increase your chance of bleeding because they reduce your blood’s ability to clot properly. For this reason, if you are about to have surgery - you should not be taking vitamin E supplements.

"People on other medicines should always consult a pharmacist before taking dietary supplements," says Thornton-Wood. "In particular, vitamin E can interfere with the action of drugs such as warfarin - a type of blood thinner - and also the action of some chemotherapy drugs."