Animal Study Links Vitamin E to Bone Loss

A Japanese study published in the journal Nature Medicine found that mice assigned to a diet with supplemental vitamin E experienced decreased bone mass. Conversely, researchers declared that mice deficient in vitamin E saw improved bone health.

The University of Keio research team looked at bone remodeling in mice. When mice were fed a diet supplemented with alpha-tocopherol (an active form of vitamin E in humans), researchers observed increased formation of bone-reducing compounds called osteoclasts. The amount of vitamin E provided to the treatment group of mice was deemed “a comparable amount of alpha tocopherol to supplements consumed by many people.”

The researchers admit that their findings run contrary to previously-published animal and human trials on vitamin E, some of which have linked vitamin E to bone-supporting potential.

Larger, better-controlled studies are needed to determine a possible association between vitamin E and bone health.