News:Vitamin C and Beta-Carotene Help Clear Dangerous Protein Accumulations in the Brain
Vitamin C or L-ascorbic acid, or simply ascorbate (the anion of ascorbic acid), is an essential nutrient for humans and certain other animal species. Vitamin C refers to a number of vitamers that have vitamin C activity in animals, including ascorbic acid and its salts, and some oxidized forms of the molecule like dehydroascorbic acid. Ascorbate and ascorbic acid are both naturally present in the body when either of these is introduced into cells, since the forms interconvert according to pH.
β-Carotene is a strongly colored red-orange pigment abundant in plants and fruits. It is an organic compound and chemically is classified as a hydrocarbon and specifically as a terpenoid (isoprenoid), reflecting its derivation from isoprene units. β-Carotene is biosynthesized from geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate. It is a member of the carotenes, which are tetraterpenes, synthesized biochemically from eight isoprene units and thus having 40 carbons. Among this general class of carotenes, β-carotene is distinguished by having beta-rings at both ends of the molecule. Absorption of β-carotene is enhanced if eaten with fats, as carotenes are fat soluble.
Critical support for the importance of a natural diet packed with antioxidant vitamins and nutrients comes from a group of researchers at the University of Ulm in Germany that has been published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. A research team headed by Dr. Christine von Arnim has discovered that the serum-concentration of the antioxidants vitamin C and beta-carotene are significantly lower in patients with mild dementia than in control persons.
This finding means that it is possible to influence the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease by bolstering a person's diet with healthy foods and dietary antioxidants. Alzheimer's disease is characterized by significant changes in brain chemistry that alter electrical and chemical transmissions that affect learning, memory and cognition.
Forward-thinking scientists believe that oxidative stress from external pollutants, household chemicals and hybridized foods over the course of decades leads to this fatal form of dementia. To further examine the effect of antioxidants from foods and supplemental forms on progression of the disease, researchers developed a cohort of 74 Alzheimer's patients and 158 healthy control participants.
The participants, aged between 65 and 90 years, underwent neuropsychological testing and answered questions regarding their lifestyle. Additionally, their blood was examined for levels of key antioxidants (vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, lycopene and coenzyme Q10) and BMI was calculated. Researchers found that concentrations of vitamin C and beta-carotene in the serum of Alzheimer's patients were significantly lower than in the blood of control subjects. No difference between the groups could be found for the other antioxidants tested.
It may come as no surprise to natural health followers that a variety of nutrients from natural food sources and supplements help in the prevention and treatment of many potentially lethal diseases. Vitamin C and beta-carotene cross the blood-brain barrier where they help to squelch stress-related oxidation. In this capacity, the duo synergistically promote the normal clearance of amyloid proteins to help protect against Alzheimer's dementia.
Sources for this article include:
http://www.naturalnews.com/037266_vitamin_C_beta-carotene_Alzheimers.html.
Learn more: [http://www.guidechem.com/cas-723/7235-40-7.html].
By Meimei
β-Carotene is a strongly colored red-orange pigment abundant in plants and fruits. It is an organic compound and chemically is classified as a hydrocarbon and specifically as a terpenoid (isoprenoid), reflecting its derivation from isoprene units. β-Carotene is biosynthesized from geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate. It is a member of the carotenes, which are tetraterpenes, synthesized biochemically from eight isoprene units and thus having 40 carbons. Among this general class of carotenes, β-carotene is distinguished by having beta-rings at both ends of the molecule. Absorption of β-carotene is enhanced if eaten with fats, as carotenes are fat soluble.
Critical support for the importance of a natural diet packed with antioxidant vitamins and nutrients comes from a group of researchers at the University of Ulm in Germany that has been published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. A research team headed by Dr. Christine von Arnim has discovered that the serum-concentration of the antioxidants vitamin C and beta-carotene are significantly lower in patients with mild dementia than in control persons.
This finding means that it is possible to influence the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease by bolstering a person's diet with healthy foods and dietary antioxidants. Alzheimer's disease is characterized by significant changes in brain chemistry that alter electrical and chemical transmissions that affect learning, memory and cognition.
Forward-thinking scientists believe that oxidative stress from external pollutants, household chemicals and hybridized foods over the course of decades leads to this fatal form of dementia. To further examine the effect of antioxidants from foods and supplemental forms on progression of the disease, researchers developed a cohort of 74 Alzheimer's patients and 158 healthy control participants.
The participants, aged between 65 and 90 years, underwent neuropsychological testing and answered questions regarding their lifestyle. Additionally, their blood was examined for levels of key antioxidants (vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, lycopene and coenzyme Q10) and BMI was calculated. Researchers found that concentrations of vitamin C and beta-carotene in the serum of Alzheimer's patients were significantly lower than in the blood of control subjects. No difference between the groups could be found for the other antioxidants tested.
It may come as no surprise to natural health followers that a variety of nutrients from natural food sources and supplements help in the prevention and treatment of many potentially lethal diseases. Vitamin C and beta-carotene cross the blood-brain barrier where they help to squelch stress-related oxidation. In this capacity, the duo synergistically promote the normal clearance of amyloid proteins to help protect against Alzheimer's dementia.
Sources for this article include:
http://www.naturalnews.com/037266_vitamin_C_beta-carotene_Alzheimers.html.
Learn more: [http://www.guidechem.com/cas-723/7235-40-7.html].
By Meimei
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