WIAW: Vitamin E

Hi everyone!

I'm doing my "half way through the week" dance!

Source

 For today's What I Ate Wednesday I wanted to talk about vitamin E.

Function
Vitamin E is actually a group of minerals (who'd have thunk it) that all have some fancy mineral names that aren't particularly important, like alpha-topocerol. What is important is how good Vitamin E is in protecting our cell membranes as a result of its antioxidant properties.It's fat soluble, and therefore particularly good at protecting the fat that lines each and every one of our cells. It kicks free radicals' little booties when they try and attack our cells.

Cheeesy face picture source

This is why vitamin E is seen as being good for the skin. These free radicals can damage the collagen that keeps our skin plump and wrinkle-free.
 
Vitamin E has been linked to preventing dementia and other age-related diseases due to these protective qualities (when cell membranes become damaged cell function can be damaged).

Vitamin E also protects bad cholesterol from free radicals. If bad cholesterol is attacked it can harden in our arteries, which in turn can lead to problems such as heart disease.

Recommended intake and deficiency
Males are recommended to take in 4mg a day, and women a little less at 3mg. We can also store vitamin E, so can drawer on our internal "pantry" of vitamin E if we have a day of low intake. However it is a good idea to make sure you're eating enough fat due to vitamin E being fat soluble.

Because of this it's rare to suffer from a deficiency, particularly if we're eating a healthy, varied diet, and symptoms are minimal if existent.

Dietary sources

Source

As usual, leafy greens are great sources (what are they not good sources of?! EAT YOUR GREENS!). As are nuts and seeds and plant oils.

- Sunflower seeds = 12mg per 1/4 cup
- Almonds = 6mg per 1/4 cup
- Spinach = 4mg per cup
- Swiss chard = 3mg per cup
- Avocado = 3mg per cup
- Olives = 2mg per cup
- Chili peppers = 2mg per 2tsp

So we should be able to easily get out vitamin E intake through our diet, protecting ourselves from heart disease, age-related diseases, and keeping our skin looking fresh.

 
So what did I eat to make sure I was getting my vitamin E?

Breakfast was moooore strawberries and some roasted nuts, including almonds - so a good dose of vitamin E there :)

 For lunch I had an M&S salad with quinoa and soya beans. Not biggies for vitamin E there, but all the veg will have had some to tot up a bit.

I also had an apple with that to fill me up a bit more.


Mid afternoon I had some popcorn to keep me going on the train journey home.

Then for dinner I had a salad with a good old lump of houmous, which contains tahini (made of sesame seeds - woop) and a few olives! I also had a date dipped in tahini, just to make sure I was getting my levels :P


 Was quite proud of my eats today :)

Again, still over on the fats, but I know they're healthy. I've got a time booked in to go and see a dietician on Monday so that I can speak to her about upping my calories etc. which I hope will be the next step in me eating more :)

What source of vitamin E did you eat today?

E x

Sources
http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=111http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminE-HealthProfessional/
http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/information/nutrition/vitamin-e-benefit-skin.htm
http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-and-supplements/lifestyle-guide-11/supplement-guide-vitamin-e?page=2
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/vitamins-minerals/Pages/Vitamin-E.aspx