Message: Canadian hemp and Himalayan herbs can be out of your reach but vanilla is everywhere.

Apocynin (acetovanillone) is structurally related to vanillin. In 1970s, apocynin was isolated from Himalayan medicinal herb Picrorhiza kurroa but long before that, in 1880s, it was found in the root of Canadian hemp Apocynum cannabinum, thus the name. Under this name, it is currently being extensively researched. An important antioxidative effect of apocynin is discussed in connection with its potential to fight neuronal dysfunction and inflammmation in diseases ranging from stroke, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases to psychiatric disorders (1).

Interestingly, researchers from Food Products Development Centre, Switzerland, considered vanillin more than a flavoring agent but a potent antioxidant effective in quantities as little as 0·01–0·5% added to foods (2). It showed stronger antioxidant activity than did Vitamin C (3).

Sources

1. Frontiers Biosci (2012) E4, 2183-2193
2. J Sci Food Agric (1989), 48, 1, 49–56
3. Biochim Biophys Acta (2011) 1810, 2, 170–177

Message: Already taking melatonin or resveratrol? Think of having both

Melatonin is naturally present in the brain  (1). It controls daily rhythms of our bodies (hence its use as a sleeping pill) and influences the immune system and aging (2,3).

When combined with vitamin C or alpha-lipoic acid (4,5), it works with them synergistically (6) highlighting their positive effects while adding something else. Recently, it was shown to be true for the the melatonin plus resveratrol combination (7).

 Sources

1. J Exp Bot 2009; 60:57–69
2. Curr Top Med Chem 2002; 2:167–779
3. J Pineal Res 2010; 48:282–289
4. J Pharm Pharmacol 2001; 53:1393–1401
5. J Pineal Res 2003; 34:269–277
6. Synergistic effect: help or hype?
7. J. Pineal Res. 2011; 50:110–123

Further reading:

In 1980s, 65% of all East Boston residents over the age of 65 were recruited in the study of neuroprotective effects of vitamins C and E. None of the people taking vitamin C or vitamin E developed Alzheimer’s disease when followed up in 4.5 years while among vitamin C non-users, 85% developed the disease. Among vitamin E non-users, 14% developed Alzheimer’s (1)

I was shown that supplementation with vitamin E and/or vitamin C might be useful in maintaining brain acetylcholinesterase (footnote a) activity at the normal level and serotonin (footnote b) concentration for some extent under the condition to induce experimental dementia in experimental animals (2)

High intake of vitamin E from food (tocopherol), but not from supplements (which usually contain alpha-tocopherol), is shown to reduce incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. The most common alpha-tocopherol alone may not be sufficient in the protective effects (3)

Sources

1. MC Morris et al, Vitamin E and Vitamin C Supplement Use and Risk of Incident Alzheimer Disease. Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders, 1998 – V12 – 3
2. LEE Lilha et al., Effect of supplementation of vitamin E and vitamin C on brain acetylcholinesterase activity and neurotransmitter levels in rats treated with scopolamine, an inducer of dementia, Journal of nutritional science and vitaminology, 2001, vol. 47, no5, pp. 323-328
3. MC  Morris et. al., Relation of the tocopherol forms to incident Alzheimer disease and to cognitive change. Am J Clin Nutrition, Vol. 81, No. 2, 508-514, February 2005

Footnotes

a) Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) is an enzyme that degrades  the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at neuromuscular junctions and cholinergic synaptic transmission in the brain.

b) Serotonin is a neurotransmitter found in the central nervous system. It is best known as a “happiness hormone” though it’s no hormone but monoamine.

Combined deficiency in vitamins C and E is a risk factor for neuronal death and brain necrosis.

Vitamin C easily crosses the blood brain barrier and its transport into the brain is mediated by glucose transporters. Vitamin C concentrations in the brain exceed those in blood by 10-fold. In humans, hypovitaminosis C correlated with brain damage in patients with head trauma (Stroke. 2001;32:898-902). The vitamin C has important functions in the brain, for example, protecting neuronal membranes from oxidative damage acting as a scavenger of free radicals.

Another free radical scavenger Vitamin E (-tocopherol) inhibits the amyloid peptide characteristic for Alzheimer’s disease known to induced cell death (Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications Volume 186, Issue 2, 31 July 1992, Pages 944-950).

The results of a study of Guinea Pigs’s fed either on normal or vitamin-deficient diets showed that while moderate deficiencies of vitamins E or C didn’t result in serious brain changes, their combined moderate deficienciescaused degenerative changes in the guinea pig brains in only 5 days after vitamins were removed from the feed.

Interestingly, the deficiencies in either E or C vitamins had only moderate consequences, but their combination caused severe brain lesions – inflammation, cell death with necrosis and apoptosis and animals’ death (Nutr. 136:1576-1581, June 2006).