Smoking Increases Vitamin E Loss, And Cancer Risk, Study Says

CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — The higher risk of cancer among smokers may be partly due to loss of vitamin E, according to a new study.

Researchers at the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University have shown that vitamin E disappears more quickly in smokers than in nonsmokers, robbing them of antioxidant protection against rogue oxygen molecules known as “free radicals.”

“Cigarette smoke is an oxidant, creating free radicals that are associated with increased oxidative stress, cell mutations, and can lead to such diseases as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes,” said Maret Traber, PhD, a professor at the institute and a national expert on vitamin E.

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that blood plasma levels of vitamin E dropped 13 percent faster among smokers than among nonsmokers, depleting the essential nutrient much more quickly.

“In lung tissue, vitamin E is one of the first lines of defense against the free radicals generated by cigarette smoke,” Ms Traber noted.

The study also suggested an important relationship between vitamins C and E.

It has been known for some time that cigarette smoking also reduced blood levels of vitamin C, Ms Traber said, but the data were less clear on vitamin E.

Now scientists say vitamin C helps prevent vitamin E itself from being changed into a free radical.

Richard Bruno, another Oregon State researcher, said the study indicates that smokers must pay more attention to their diet in order to maintain vitamin E levels.

Plants produce more vitamin E to protect themselves when they are under stress but humans do not have that ability and must obtain the nutrient from their diet, the researchers said.

They also note that vitamin E must be present in the body to prevent free radical damage. It cannot repair all the damage already done.

An estimated 50 million Americans smoke cigarettes at a time when some of the most common sources of vitamin E in the diet — oils, fats, desserts — have been steadily reduced in the move toward low-fat diets.