Vitamin E could make bones weaker
Taking vitamin E supplements may make bones old and frail before their time,
Japanese researchers say.
A study found that animals fed on a diet supplemented with the vitamin had bones 20 per cent weaker than those that ate normally. More worrying is that the effect was seen after just eight weeks, the Daily Mail reported.
The scientists behind the research said that given the popularity of vitamin E supplements, a larger study on people is now warranted. The vitamin, which occurs naturally in cereals, nuts, olive oil and egg yolks, is credited with helping hold back the hands of time by 'fighting ageing from within'.
Benefits are said to include cutting the risk of heart disease, cancers and cataracts, as well as helping keep the mind sharp into old age and the skin supple. One of the world's most popular supplements, it is taken daily by hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Britons. In the US, more than one in ten adults take vitamin E tablets.
The latest study looked at the effect of alpha-tocopherol, the most common form of the vitamin, on bone strength. Bone is constantly changing, with old bone broken down and new bone being built. Osteoporosis occurs when old bone is broken down by the body far more quickly than it is replaced.
In the Japanese study, mice genetically modified to have low levels of the vitamin in their blood, grew bones that were extra-thick. This was found to be due to them being poor at breaking down old bone, rather than good at making new stuff. When vitamin E was added to the animals' diet, their bone density returned to normal.
In another experiment, giving normal mice alpha-tocopherol vitamin E supplements at doses equivalent to those taken by people, led to their bones thinning by a fifth in just two months.
The same result was seen in rats. Researcher Dr Shu Takeda, of Keio University in Tokyo, called for a larger study on the vitamin's effect on human bones.
"There is nothing to worry about if you are getting plenty of vitamin E from your diet but those taking high doses of the nutrient in supplements need to be wary," said Professor Helen MacDonald, an advisor to the National Osteoporosis Society.
"You have to remember this research was carried out on animals and findings in humans can be very different. But more research is needed," Dr Takeda added.
Details of the study appeared in the journal Nature Medicine.
07.03.2012
Wonder pill
to save thousands of heart patients
A pill costing just 1.40 pound a day can
dramatically slashed the number of deaths from heart failure, researchers have found.
The wonder drug, which is now available to British patients, could save the lives of tens of thousands of sufferers from one of the most common heart conditions each year.
It would also save the NHS millions by cutting hospital admissions by a quarter.
One expert who has been involved in the drug's trials hailed it as "fantastic news for both patients and doctors," the Daily Express reported. "This will have a huge impact up and down the country," said Professor Martin Cowie, consultant cardiologist and specialist in heart failure at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London. The drug has already been used in angina patients in the UK for years and is known to be safe.
But now it has been approved by the European Medicines Agency for use in treating those with heart failure, a devastating condition that affects 900,000 people in this country.
This EMA approval is an important step in the drug - ivabradine, which is also known under the brand name Procoralan - being licensed in the UK for widespread use in the NHS.
The medicines watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, is considering the trial data, with a licensing decision expected later this year.
In the meantime, it can only be prescribed at the discretion of individual primary care trusts or specialist cardiologists in hospitals. Yet trials have shown that Procoralan slashes the number of deaths by 39 per cent, suggesting that 39,000 lives could be saved.
It also cuts hospital admissions by 24 per cent, which is set to significantly reduce the 625 million pounds, a year in healthcare costs that heart failure amounts to for the NHS - a possible annual saving of more than 100million pounds. New trial involving 6,505 people in 37 countries including the UK also found that Procoralan could also cut the risk of death from all types of cardiovascular disease by 17 per cent.
The drug, which is made by Servier, works by slowing the heart rate. Unlike other treatments, it lowers heartbeats per minute without lowering blood pressure.
"Heart failure is a very common problem, affecting approximately 1 per cent of the population. The decision to approve this new indication for ivabradine is great news for both doctors and patients, and is a significant step forward," said Professor Cowie
07.03.2012
Ideologies
separate us.
Dreams and anguish bring us together
Eugene Ionesco
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