A Girl's Best Friends - supplements for women

Vegetarian Times, Feb, 1999 by Andrea Mather

Forget diamonds. According to Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., what every woman needs are these five essential supplements

We try to eat well, manage our stress, get plenty of exercise and listen to our bodies when they say it's time to rest. Such is the secret to good health. But let's face it, the best-laid plans aren't always carried through, and we gals are often left to face stress-filled days, fast food that's eaten on the run, missed workouts and far too little sleep. While we shouldn't beat ourselves up when we fall short of our health goals, neither should we be naive about the possible consequences: heart disease, cancer, stroke and osteoporosis.

Countless studies have shown that these diseases can be managed, and sometimes prevented altogether, through good diet and lifestyle habits. But because we can't always be at our best, nutritional supplements provide an excellent backup system.

Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., a cardiologist and author of Optimum Health (Bantam Books, 1997) and The Coenzyme [Q.sub.10] Phenomenon (Keats Publishing, 1999) talked with Vegetarian Times assistant managing editor Andrea Mather about the most protective supplements for women. Not surprisingly, three of his choices are antioxidants, powerful disease-fighting nutrients that combat free radicals, which destroy cells and contribute to all of the major women's diseases. Of course, Sinatra's recommendations are only guidelines; before taking any supplement, check with a health professional.

COENZYME Q10

This vitamin is a great antioxidant supplement for both men and women. Also called co[Q.sub.10], it helps delay aging by strengthening cell wells and producing the cellular energy needed for every bodily function. It supports the immune system to make us more resistant to disease. It staves off diabetes, lowers blood pressure and protects the heart.

But the reason it's particularly good for women--perhaps even the number one supplement for women--is because it appears to help prevent breast cancer. A recent Swedish study found that 39 percent of the female study participants with breast cancer also had low blood levels of co[Q.sub.10]. Although more research needs to be done to explore this relationship, taking supplemental co[Q.sub.10] will lower the risk for breast cancer in women who eat a diet that's heavy in saturated fats, drink a lot of alcohol, are exposed to toxins like pesticides or petrochemicals, take cholesterol-lowering drugs, have hyperthyroid disease or a family history of breast cancer.

Our bodies extract co[Q.sub.10] from food (primarily meat and fish), so even with the most balanced, healthful vegetarian diet, women still need to supplement. There's another reason--as we age, our bodies are less able to absorb co[Q.sub.10] from the foods we eat.

DOSAGE: Women under the age of 40: 30 milligrams (ms.) twice daily after meals; women over 40: 60mg. twice daily after meals. For best absorption, take an oil-based co[Q.sub.10] in soft gel caps.

B VITAMINS

Across the board, the B vitamins, particularly folic acid, [B.sub.6] and [B.sub.12], are highly beneficial for women. They lower levels of the amino acid homocysteine, which can increase the risk for heart attack and stroke, and they protect women from cervical cancer.

Women need B supplements because our diet doesn't provide enough of them. Studies have also shown that women who take birth control pills or estrogen replacement therapy may be deficient in [B.sub.12] although researchers aren't sure why. Some vegetarians may be lacking [B.sub.12] because it's mainly found in meat and dairy products. And women of childbearing age, in particular, need to make sure they are getting enough folic acid because it safeguards against such birth defects as spina bifida (congenital neural tube defects).

DOSAGE: A mixed B-complex that contains 800 micrograms (mcg.) of folic acid, 20mg. of [B.sub.6] and 20mcg. of [B.sub.12]. Take after meals, once daily.

VITAMIN E

This is a very important antioxidant for women. Unequivocally, supplemental dosages of vitamin E protect women against heart disease and stroke by neutralizing the LDL ("bad") cholesterol. The famous Harvard Nurses Health Study involving some 87,000 women reported a 41 percent reduction in the rate of heart disease among nurses who had been taking vitamin E for more than two years. This powerhouse also supports the immune system.

Because it's found mainly in high-fat foods, the amount of fat a woman would need to eat to get enough would be unhealthy. So it's necessary to be taken supplementally.

DOSAGE: 400 International Units (IU) after a meal, once daily. Look for capsules that contain both alpha and gamma tocopherols, the chemical name for vitamin E.

LUTEIN

This nutrient is part of the carotenoid family of antioxidants, which are found primarily in red, yellow, orange and green fruits and vegetables. In fact, carotenoids, like lutein, are what give these foods their pigments.

Lutein is highly valued because it protects against free radical destruction of the retina, which causes age-related macular degeneration (blindness). A 1994 Cambridge University study also demonstrated that lutein benefits the heart. The study found that women of Belfast, Ireland, were eight times more likely to have a heart attack than women of Toulouse, France. Researchers expected that the reason would be related to the good fats and red wine found in the French diet, but what emerged as the major protective factor was actually lutein. These French women ate lots of fruits and vegetables and therefore had higher levels of lutein in their blood than the Irish women.