Barrie Tan, PhD: Using Tocotrienols to Address Lifestyle and Metabolic Disease

Vitamin E has two subgroups, tocopherols and tocotrienols. In this interview, Dr Tan describes current sources and compositions of tocotrienols. The discussion also explores the anti-inflammatory properties observed with tocotrienol application in cardiovascular and metabolic disease, cancer, radiation exposure, and bone ailments; the nutrient's potential in management of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease; and addresses recent studies highlighting tocotrienol's role as the 21st century vitamin E. Tocotrienols from plant sources were first developed and brought to the market by Dr Tan, inventor of numerous processes for tocotrienol extraction from plants. These discoveries include tocotrienols from palm (1992), then rice (1998), and finally annatto (2002).