Originally published May 17 2013
Lack of CoQ10 in blood causes serious illness: Study
by PF Louis
(NaturalNews) A recent study at Harvard Medical School, recorded April 22, 2013 in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), provided an association with low blood level CoQ10 to critical illness.
There were 32 critically ill patients compared to 18 healthy control subjects. The purpose was to determine if low plasma readings were common to only critically ill patients with septic shock or if lower CoQ10 plasma levels were common to all critically ill patients.
According to MedLinePlus, "Septic shock (SS) is a serious condition that occurs when an overwhelming infection leads to life-threatening low blood pressure."
Thirty-two critically ill patients were checked, some with SS and others without SS against the average CoQ10 plasma levels of the healthy subjects. Although the SS CoQ10 level average was the lowest, those who were critically ill without SS didn't fare much better. It was significantly lower than the control group.
The study, "Critical illness is associated with decreased plasma levels of coenzyme Q-10: A cross-sectional study" concluded: "Decreased plasma CoQ10 levels are not specific to patients with SS, but rather observed in a broad range of critically ill patients. In critically ill patients, CoQ10 insufficiency may be associated with various conditions; age may be a risk factor."
The what and why of CoQ10
Coenzyme-Q10 (CoQ10) availability is indeed a factor of age. The body's ability to produce or recycle it starts declining around age 20. By 80 years of age the ability to produce it is virtually non-existent.
It is, as the name implies, a co-enzyme. It is a non-protein vitamin-like compound that assists enzymes' metabolic production in cellular mitochondria for andenosene triphosphate (ATP), which provides energy for bodily functions.
This ATP process depends heavily on oxygen, without which cells cannot create sufficient ATP and are forced to adapt to fermentation for their energy. That's what anaerobic cancer cells are about. This is enough to consider taking CoQ10 to help prevent cancer.
CoQ10 as ubiquinone is the oxidized form that's ubiquitous throughout the body. It needs to be converted to ubiquinol, the active antioxidant form to be part of the ATP production cycle.
That is one reason to purchase ubiquinol in gel caps. It's pricier than straight CoQ10, but it's ready to deliver without going through a conversion process. Coenzyme Q-10 is fat soluble. So taking it with some foods that contain fats is advised.
Coenzyme Q-10 was first identified in 1957. The "Q-10" is one of those esoteric chemical bond refernces. It caught on heavily among the Japanese, especially among those with heart disease issues.
CoQ10 is also used extensively in Europe and Russia. Most CoQ10 supplements used in North America are supplied by Japanese companies. It is manufactured by fermenting beets and sugar cane with special strains of yeast.
CoQ10 health benefits
Although CoQ10 is ubiquitous, as the terms ubiquinone and ubiquinol imply, it tends to be attracted to organs' cells that require more energy to function properly, such as the kidneys, liver, pancreas, and especially the heart. So anyone having difficulties with those organs could try supplementing CoQ10.
Even issues such as high blood pressure, gingivitis, migraines, and stomach ulcers have been associated with low CoQ10 levels. People with immune dysfunction symptoms such as AIDS and Parkinson's disease are advised to supplement with CoQ10, especially as ubiquinol.
Up to 3000 mg divided into smaller doses daily has been used safely for those serious conditions. A lesser amount shouldn't incur any gastrointestinal discomfort that the 3000 mg sometimes will.
CoQ10 should also be used upon approaching those "Golden Years" in order to remain healthy enough to enjoy them. Ninety to 150 mg daily of ubiquinol CoQ10 should be good enough to notice some health benefits. It's definitely worth a month's trial.
Sources for this article include:
http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/40665
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23618779
http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/supplements/a/CoenzymeQ10.htm
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/938.html
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