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by: Greg Post |
Throughout my childhood
I was aware of the importance of eating well and taking my vitamins.
But the science of dietary supplements has come a long way since
those days. And one of the stars in this scientific progression is
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). CoQ10 is not a drug. It is a vitamin-like
substance that is found in small amounts in a variety of foods and
is synthesized within our body tissues.
Enzymes are
compounds in the body that are absolutely essential for the many
processes necessary to keep us alive and our bodies functioning
properly. Mitochondrial enzymes are those particular enzymes that
are essential for the production of the high-energy phosphate ATP
(adenosine triphosphate) upon which all cellular function depends.
Without it our bodies shut down at the cellular level. Coenzyme Q10
is the cofactor upon which at least three mitochondrial enzymes
depend. By logical inference then ATP functioning depends upon
CoQ10. In short, all human cellular function depends on ATP. And ATP
function depends on CoQ10.
As was already said, the
production of CoQ10 occurs within our body tissues. Its biosynthesis
from the amino acid tyrosine is a complex multistage process
requiring several vitamins and trace elements. Under normal
conditions we produce all we need while we are young. But there are
many factors that can contribute to CoQ10 deficiency. Among these
are aging, disease, dietary deficiency, use of statin drugs and
increasing tissue demands. Before we get to CoQ10 deficiencies,
however, it is well to look at the history of CoQ10 research.
History
CoQ10 was first isolated by Dr. Frederick
Crane in 1957 from the mitochondria of beef heart. During that same
year Professor Morton, from Britain, also discovered CoQ10 in the
livers of vitamin A deficient rats. During the following year
researchers at Merck, Inc. determined its chemical structure and
became the first to produce it.
It was neither the British nor the Americans that
first found a practical use for the CoQ compounds. Professor
Yamamura from Japan first used a related compound (CoQ7) in the
treatment of congestive heart failure. Other practical uses then
followed. CoQ6 was used as an effective antioxidant in the mid
1960s. In 1972 (in Italy) deficiency of CoQ10 was linked to heart
disease. The Japanese, however, were the first to perfect the
technology necessary to produce CoQ10 in sizeable enough quantities
to make large clinical trials a reality.
After Peter
Mitchell won the Nobel Prize in 1978 for defining the biological
energy transfer that occurs at the cellular level (for which CoQ10
is essential) there was a considerable increase in the number of
clinical studies performed in relation to CoQ10 usefulness. This was
due in part to the large amounts of pharmaceutical grade CoQ10 that
was now available from Japan and the ability to measure CoQ10 in
blood and body tissues. CoQ10 since has become known for its
importance as a powerful antioxidant and free radical scavenger and
as a treatment in many chronic illnesses, especially heart disease.
Coenzyme Q10 Deficiency
The usefulness of CoQ10 as a
medical treatment has largely been approached from the perspective
that when a chronic disease is present (especially in the case of
heart disease) CoQ10 is often grossly deficient. For example, a
person suffering from congestive heart failure often demonstrates
extreme CoQ10 deficiency. Normal blood and tissue levels of CoQ10
have been well established. Significantly low levels of CoQ10 have
been linked to a vast variety of diseases in both animal and human
studies.
But if CoQ10 is biosynthesized in our bodies why do
we often suffer from deficiency? There are at least three causes.
The first is an insufficient diet. Dietary intake of CoQ10 is an
important factor in total blood and tissue levels of the compound.
If we do not consume enough of the foods that contain CoQ10 then the
body must make up the difference. Further, the biosynthesis of
Coenzyme Q10 is a complex 17-step process involving a whole string
of B vitamins, vitamin C and pantothenic acid. Diets deficient in
these compounds make CoQ10 synthesis impossible. This is not the
place to discuss the condition of the average diet and the vitamin
deficient nature of many of our food sources. Suffice it to say that
most of us do not get nearly enough CoQ10 or the other vitamins
necessary for optimal synthesis.
The
second cause of deficiency is linked to the first, and that is
impairment of CoQ10 biosynthesis. In addition to inadequate intakes
of the compounds necessary to make CoQ10 there are other biological
reasons for inadequate production of it. These might include
physiological conditions and chronic diseases that cause failure in
production. The treatments of diseases can also be a factor. For
instance the use of statins to control cholesterol levels has been
implicated in the depletion of CoQ10 levels. The catch-22 is, in
treating heart disease we use drugs that deplete natural compounds
that in turn are necessary to fight heart disease.
The third
cause of CoQ10 deficiency is excessive use of the compound by the
body. This again can be related to medications, aging or other
causes such as excessive exertion, hypermetabolism, and acute shock
states.
The real cause of CoQ10 deficiency is usually a
combination of these three influences. It is likely that the average
CoQ10 levels which have been observed in humans are suboptimal. In
other words, the normal levels of CoQ10 that have become the
standard for comparisons are very likely less than optimal. That
would mean that the extremely low levels observed in connection with
chronic diseases are just the worse case scenarios and that other
less serious maladies are connected with lesser levels of
deficiency.
If this sounds too much like laboratory theory,
it isn’t. Patients who suffer from chronic diseases and also
demonstrate extreme low levels of CoQ10 are not laboratory
specimens. They are people who, in many cases, have been greatly
helped by CoQ10 supplementation. If chronic disease is only the tip
of the iceberg when it comes to CoQ10 deficiency one is forced to
wonder what better diets and CoQ10 supplementing could do for the
eradication of diseases and other chronic conditions.
About
the author:
Greg holds degrees in science, divinity and
philosophy and is currently an I.T. developer.
www.optimal-heart-health.com/coq10.html
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