09 November 2009
High combined intakes of vitamin C and vitamin E, beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin from food may decrease the frequency of chromosome damage in ionizing radiation-exposed persons, a new study reports.
The study examined the association between the frequency of chromosome translocations, as a biomarker of cumulative DNA damage, and intakes of vitamins C and E and carotenoids in 82 male airline pilots (1). The results showed that high dietary antioxidant intakes were associated with a significant decrease in DNA damage induced by ionizing radiation (IR), a cause of cancer.
The intake of antioxidants, which can neutralize reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated endogenously or exogenously, has been extensively investigated in relation to DNA damage and cancer risk. Ionizing radiation (IR) is an established human cancer factor and an efficient inducer of chromosome abnormalities, which have also been shown to be associated with increased cancer risk in prospective studies. Airline pilots are exposed to elevated levels of cosmic IR.
During past decades, numerous animal or in vitro studies have suggested that antioxidants may provide protection against several forms of DNA damage induced by IR. To date, human data supporting these associations are limited. Of the dietary antioxidants, vitamins C and E and beta-carotene have been the focus of most research.
24 March 2011
Women with an increased intake of vitamin B12 during the first three months of pregnancy are up to eight times more likely to have babies who cry less according to a new Dutch study.
27 June 2014
A new US review suggests that people with lower blood levels of vitamin D are twice as likely to die prematurely as people with higher blood vitamin D levels.
5 August 2011
According to a new study from UK, a protective effect of folic acid against depression outside pregnancy is particularly observed at women with the MTHFR C677T TT genotype.
