Tocotrienols, Tocopherols Improve Rats' Liver Health

EDISON, N.J.A 2013 study by University of Tokyo researchers found d-mixed tocotrienol and alpha-tocopherol supplementation improved liver health and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in rats. Published in the Journal of Clinical Biochemistry and Nutrition, the study found four weeks of supplementation significantly reduced triglycerides accumulation in the liver and inhibited liver fibrosis.

Scientists formed five different groups to study NASH, the most extreme form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, in rats (J. Clin. Biochem. Nutr. , 52 (2), 146-153.). Control subjects had a vitamin E-deficient, high-fat diet; the vitamin E groups either received an alpha-tocopherol enriched, a mixed-tocotrienol enriched or a combination of the two diets. Rats receiving full spectrum d-mixed tocotrienols and alpha-tocopherol displayed reduced triglycerides, decreased lipid peroxide levels and improved hepatic damage markers, compared to the standalone alpha-tocopherol or d-mixed tocotrienol groups.

The combination of alpha-tocopherol and d-mixed tocotrienols work synergistically and exert better protection for liver, than the standalone pure alpha-tocopherol and pure mixed-tocotrienol," said WH Leong, vice president of Carotech, producer of natural full spectrum tocotrienol/tocopherol complex. According to a new study, tocotrienols and tocopherols can also help predict and diagnose Alzheimer's disease.