Vitamin E deficiency can damage brain

New York, April 14 , 2015: Eating diets rich in vitamin E can help you stay sharp as researchers have found that deficiency of this vitamin may cause damage to brain cells. Vitamin E deficiency may interrupt a supply line of specific nutrients and rob the brain of the "building blocks" it needs to maintain neuronal health, the findings showed. "This research showed that vitamin E is needed to prevent a dramatic loss of a critically important molecule in the brain, and helps explain why vitamin E is needed for brain health," said lead author of the study Maret Traber, professor at Oregon State University in the US. Vitamin E in human diets is most often provided by dietary oils, such as olive oil. But many of the highest levels are in foods not routinely considered dietary staples - almonds, sunflower seeds or avocados. The research showed that zebrafish fed a diet deficient in vitamin E throughout their life had about 30 percent lower levels of docosahexaenoic acid-containing phosphatidylcholines (DHA-PC), which is a part of the cellular membrane in every brain cell, or neuron. Other recent studies have concluded that low levels of DHA-PC in the blood plasma of humans is a biomarker than can predict a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease. "You cannot build a house without the necessary materials," Traber said.