Vitamin E and depression.(essential natural health news)(Brief Article)

People with major clinical depression appear to have lower levels of alpha-tocopherol--a form of vitamin E--circulating in their bloodstreams, report researchers. They plan to investigate further whether vitamin E supplements call help relieve depression's symptoms.

Levels of vitamin E had been previously reported to be lower in patients suffering major depression, but it was not known whether it was due to inadequate dietary' intake or a result of the depression itself.

An Australian team from the University of Wollongong measured plasma alpha-tocopherol levels in 49 adults with major depression and looked at patients' usual dietary- intake of vitamin E by investigating diet history in a subset of the group. This was designed to check whether these subjects had a lower dietary intake of the vitamin than healthy people--or had their vitamin E levels reduced by the depression.

Diet analysis indicated that 89 percent of subjects met or exceeded the recommended intake for vitamin E. Therefore, dietary intake is likely not ...