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Current status of vitamin E nutriture
Jaspreet K C Ahuja1, Joseph D Goldman, Alanna J Moshfegh
1Food Surveys Research Group, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Building 005, BARC-W, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. jahuja@rbhnrc.usda.gov
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
|March 9, 2005
Summary
Most adults have inadequate vitamin E intake, falling below the Estimated Average Requirement. This reassessment highlights the need for further research into vitamin E
Area of Science:
- Nutritional Science
- Public Health Nutrition
- Dietary Assessment
Background:
- Current vitamin E recommendations have increased.
- Only alpha-tocopherol is considered in vitamin E recommendations.
- Vitamin E's role in chronic disease prevention is increasingly recognized.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reassess the vitamin E intake status of adults.
- To evaluate the adequacy of usual vitamin E intake based on updated recommendations.
- To investigate the implications of widespread low vitamin E intake.
Main Methods:
- Developed a comprehensive database of alpha-tocopherol values for over 7,000 foods.
- Utilized dietary data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2000.
- Determined and evaluated usual intake distributions for vitamin E adequacy.
Main Results:
- Ninety percent or more of the studied adults had usual vitamin E intakes below the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR).
- The prevalence of inadequate vitamin E intake among U.S. adults is substantial.
- No overt signs of vitamin E deficiency were observed in the U.S. population.
Conclusions:
- Current vitamin E intake levels in the U.S. population are largely insufficient.
- The discrepancy between low intake and lack of deficiency signs warrants further investigation.
- Further research is needed to understand vitamin E's role in health and disease prevention.