Vitamins

Do The Vitamins You Take Really Work?
by Ron Manzanero, M.D.

Last month I introduced the idea of natural vs. synthetic vs. fractionated vitamins. To recap: Natural vitamins are derived from whole food or animal sources, while synthetic vitamins may come from coal tar products or other chemical pharmaceutical sources. Typically, the prefix “d-“ signifies a natural source and “dl-“ signifies a synthetic vitamin. Other clues, such as “pyridoxine hydrochloride,” indicate a synthetic form of vitamin B6. A fractionated version of vitamin E, while potentially from a natural source such as d-alpha tocopherol, is only a fragment of the whole vitamin E complex which contains d-alpha, -beta, -gamma, -delta tocopherols and tocotrienols. Therefore, alpha tocopherol by itself is considered a fractionated vitamin. Another example is beta-carotene, which is only one member of the carotenoid family. Exciting research was done in the 1990’s on whole carotenoid complex mixtures. (Remember that the best-known member of this family is beta-carotene. The Golden Neo-Life Diamite (GNLD) nutritional company spent seven years researching carotenoids and how best to extract them from foods and manufacture them. They conducted a bioavailability study on human subjects showing that delivery in an olive oil base elevated the blood levels of certain carotenoids. This study was presented at the prestigious New York Academy of Sciences. Later, because of this study, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), along with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), conducted a series of clinical trials with this same product, called Carotenoid Complex. The most interesting study demonstrated an increase in immune functioning with the Carotenoid Complex versus synthetic beta-carotene.

In the study, researchers took normal human subjects, measured their baseline immune functioning, then placed them on a carotenoid-deficient diet. This part of the study had to be halted due to a decline in the immune systems of the subjects. Next, the group was divided into two groups, one being supplemented with synthetic beta-carotene and the other given the Carotenoid Complex. After 20 days the subjects’ immune systems were retested, and it was found that those in the synthetic beta-carotene group had partial recovery of their immune function, while those in the Carotenoid Complex group had a dramatic increase above normal baseline in immune functioning. They had an overall 37% increase in white blood cell proliferation and a 21% increase in the level of natural killer cells, which are the white blood cells that help defend against cancer. This study can be found in the April 1997 issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, (1997; 65:871-5). Based on this study and several others, it can now be said that when nutrient vitamins are supplied in their natural, whole food complex forms, the benefits are superior to taking synthetic, fractionated vitamins.

When I educate my patients on supplements, I try to give them a “gold standard” by which to measure their vitamins: 1) Are the vitamins whole food extracts? 2) Are they complexes of the whole family or just a fraction of the family; i.e., beta-carotene versus carotenoid complex? 3) Is there a clinical trial indicating actual absorption and benefit for humans? Sadly, there are few supplements that meet these standards, and there are few vitamin manufacturers that adhere to them. In my clinical practice, I emphasize the use of supplements that follow these criteria; however, unfortunately for the consumer, these types of vitamins are either sold through doctors only or through independent distributors. Ask your health care practitioners if they prescribe supplements that conform to the above criteria.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.