AND THIS SECTION IS GOING TO BE ON VITAMIN E.

WE'RE GOING TO START WITH THE FUNCTION OF VITAMIN E,

AND ALTHOUGH IT HAS A FEW FUNCTIONS

IT'S MAIN FUNCTION THAT I WANT YOU TO KNOW

IS AS AN ANTIOXIDANT.

NOW, WE REVIEWED ANTIOXIDANTS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE COURSE,

BUT JUST FOR REVIEW.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT THIS DIAGRAM HERE,

AND WHAT IT'S REPRESENTING IS THIS HERE AS A FREE RADICAL

CAUSING DESTRUCTION IN ESSENTIALLY A CHAIN REACTION.

NOW, REMEMBER FREE RADICALS ARE VERY UNSTABLE

AND THEY WANT TO BIND TO SOMETHING.

AND THEY CAN BIND TO DNA, THEY CAN BIND TO SOME MEMBRANES,

AND THEN CAUSE DAMAGE.

IF THAT DAMAGE GOES-- CONTINUOUS,

AND WE THINK OF THIS DOMINO EFFECT RIGHT HERE,

THEN IT CAN LEAD TO CHRONIC DISEASE.

THE GOAL WITH ANY ANTIOXIDANT IS TO BASICALLY BLOCK PROGRESSION

OF THE FREE RADICAL DAMAGE.

AND IT DOES THIS BY QUENCHING THE FREE RADICAL,

OR THINK ABOUT IT NEUTRALIZING THE FREE RADICAL.

IF IT CAN STABILIZE IT

THEN THAT FREE RADICAL WON'T WANT TO BIND TO STRUCTURES

THAT WE DON'T WANT IT TO BIND TO.

SO VITAMIN E IS AN ANTIOXIDANT, QUENCHES FREE RADICALS

WHICH PROTECTS CELLULAR STRUCTURES

FROM OXIDATIVE DAMAGE.

AN OXIDATIVE DAMAGE IS THE DAMAGE THAT OCCURS

FROM FREE RADICALS.

SO WHERE DO YOU FIND VITAMIN E?

WELL, THERE ARE A LOT OF SOURCES

BUT WE TEND TO THINK ABOUT VITAMIN E

AS COMING FROM SUNFLOWER SEEDS, ALMONDS,

AND IT CAN BE IN OTHER SEEDS, AND NUTS AS WELL,

JUST NOT IN AS HIGH OF A SOURCE, SPINACH AND THEN AVOCADO.

AND I WANT TO POINT OUT ASIDE FROM THIS SPINACH

WE CAN SEE THE AVOCADO, ALMONDS, AND SUNFLOWERS THERE.

THEY HAVE A LOT OF FAT IN THEM,

AND REMEMBER WE'RE STILL ON FAT SOLUBLE VITAMINS.

SO WHEN YOU'RE OBTAINING A FAT SOLUBLE VITAMIN

AND NATURE IS IN GENERAL GOING TO OCCUR WITH SOME TYPE OF FAT

AND THAT'S GOING TO ASSIST IN ABSORPTION, YOU KNOW,

FROM THE DIGESTIVE TRACK INTO THE BLOODSTREAM.

SO VITAMIN E, FAT SOLUBLE VITAMIN,

YOU NEED FAT FOR ABSORPTION AND HERE ARE A FEW SOURCES.

NOW, WHAT ABOUT VITAMIN E DEFICIENCY?

WE GENERALLY DON'T SEE VITAMIN E DEFICIENCY.

IT'S NOT THAT COMMON.

SO, AGAIN, IT'S RARE.

BUT YOU CAN SEE A LOSS OF MUSCLE COORDINATION AND REFLEXES.

THERE CAN BE IMPAIRED VISION AND SPEECH.

IN--WELL, NOT CHILDREN, INFANTS

IS SOMETHING CALLED ERYTHROCYTE HEMOLYSIS,

AND WHAT THAT MEANS, ERYTHROCYTE IS A RED BLOOD CELL,

AND HEMOLYSIS BASICALLY MEANS THAT IT'S BREAKING APART.

YOU CAN THINK OF IT ALMOST LIKE IT'S EXPLODING.

A MEMBRANE CAN'T HOLD THE CELL TOGETHER.

WHEN THAT HAPPENS IT'S JUST GOING TO FALL APART.

SO THAT CAN HAPPEN IN INFANTS. AGAIN, IT'S NOT THAT COMMON.

THAT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU GENERALLY SEE IN ADULTS.

AND THEN BECAUSE VITAMIN E IS AN ANTIOXIDANT,

LOW LEVELS OF IT, NOT NECESSARILY DEFICIENCY,

CAN LEAD TO CHRONIC DISEASE.

NOW, WHAT ABOUT VITAMIN E TOXICITY?

AGAIN, FROM FOOD YOU'RE NOT GOING TO SEE IT.

YOU'RE NOT GOING TO EAT SO MANY ALMONDS OR IN SUNFLOWER SEEDS

THAT YOU END UP WITH VITAMIN E TOXICITY.

BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO SUPPLEMENT WITH VITAMIN E,

AND WHAT'S REALLY INTERESTING IS THAT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN

AND RECENT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT VITAMIN E SUPPLEMENTS

ACTUALLY ARE ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED MORTALITY RISK.

AND IT'S BECAUSE WHEN THIS WAS STUDIED FIRST

RECOGNIZED THAT VITAMIN E IS AN ANTIOXIDANT

AND VITAMIN E MIGHT REDUCE THE RISK OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE

THE IDEA IS TO SUPPLEMENT WITH VITAMIN E

TO SEE IF IT REDUCES THE RISK OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE.

INSTEAD WHAT THEY FOUND IS THAT IT ACTUALLY INCREASED MORTALITY

IN HEALTHY PATIENTS.

SO IT IS RECOMMENDED NOT TO SUPPLEMENT WITH VITAMIN E.

AND IF YOU'RE TAKING A MULTIVITAMIN

YOU NEED TO BE CAREFUL AND MAKE SURE

THAT IT DOESN'T HAVE A VERY HIGH DOSE OF VITAMIN E.

AND THAT'S THE END OF OUR DISCUSSION ON VITAMIN E.