Vitamin E supplements and health outcomes in large clinical studies
What it found
Large trials in people found disappointing results for vitamin E supplements.
A lack of vitamin E causes nerve problems in people and infertility in animals.
What they found
Studies in people
Heart disease supplement trials
Recent large trials in people tested vitamin E supplements against dummy pills. The results did not support taking vitamin E supplements to prevent disease.
Animal and lab studies
Antioxidant activity in labs
In lab tests, vitamin E works as an antioxidant by mopping up damaging molecules. This is why many people believe supplements offer health benefits.
Studies in people and animals
Nerve problems in people
A lack of vitamin E leads to nerve problems in people. In lab animals, a shortage causes infertility and movement issues that appear later.
Other findings
Other possible roles
The authors suggest vitamin E might do more in the body than just act as an antioxidant. They examined evidence for these other possible roles.
What the authors conclude
- They say the disappointing trial results can be explained by looking closely at the evidence behind common beliefs about vitamin E.
- They suggest vitamin E may have roles in the body beyond acting as an antioxidant.
How it was done
Vitamin E supplements are widely believed to help prevent diseases linked to oxidative damage, especially heart disease. The authors wanted to check the evidence behind this belief.
The authors looked at recent large clinical trials in people that compared vitamin E supplements to dummy pills. They also examined scientific data testing the assumptions behind vitamin E use.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These large trials followed people over time and compared groups.
- They can show whether supplements made a difference but cannot always explain exactly why.
- Lab tests showing antioxidant effects cannot prove the same thing happens inside the human body.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of New South Wales, Australia
The paper
- Title
- Vitamin E
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Stocker R (2007). Vitamin E. Novartis Foundation symposium. doi:10.1002/9780470319444.ch6PubMed 17913225DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error