Researchers from University of Rochester showed that total cholesterol levels in rats dropped by 42 percent, and LDL-cholesterol levels dropped up to 62 percent, after their diets were supplemented with a concentrated form of Vitamin E, Tocotrienol rich fraction, or TRF, isolated from rice bran oil.

Vitamin E consists of both tocopherols and tocotrienols.

“ Much research has focused on the tocopherols derived from corn, wheat and soybean. But the tocotrienols ( TRF ) seem to have greater antioxidant properties and are becoming more noteworthy in scientific research,” Mohammad Minhajuddin says.

Tocotrienol rich fraction is derived from barley, oats, palm and rice bran.

The best form of TRF comes from rice bran oil, which is contained in the outer grain hull of rice.
Its properties inhibit the activity of HMG-CoA reductase, an enzyme involved in cholesterol biosynthesis.
However, since taking any form of Vitamin E for a long time can be harmful, the purpose of research was to find the minimum dose of TRF that provided the maximum antioxidants and effectively lowered cholesterol.

The most effective dose in rats was 8 IU kg/day.
Extrapolated to humans, a person with an average body weight of 154 pounds would get around 560 IU, which is close to the 400 IU of Vitamin E normally taken.

Minhajuddin also has preliminary, unpublished data from a study he conducted in India, showing that TRF reduces cholesterol in humans as well as in animals.
Five healthy volunteers with total cholesterol levels in the "normal" range of 170-230 mg/dL, who ingested TRF in capsule form at a dose of 8 IU kg/day for four weeks, saw their cholesterol levels drop by 10 percent with a 26-percent decline in LDL-cholesterol levels.
A case study of a 5-year-old boy in India, who had a genetic defect ( familial hypercholesterolemia ) that caused his total cholesterol to climb to 440 mg/dL, resulted in a 20-percent decline after about two months of Tocotrienol supplements.
The boy's cholesterol did rise again, however, after 100 weeks of TRF supplements.

In addition, Minhajuddin and colleagues previously showed in animals that TRF reacts with liver enzymes in such a way that it clears toxic substances from the organ, and reduces or stabilizes liver tumors.

Source: Food and Chemical Toxicology, 2005


XagenaMedicine2005