Word: vitamin
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...vitamin attracting attention is folic acid, also known as folate, which was first isolated from spinach. This B vitamin appears to guard against two of the most common and devastating neurological defects afflicting newborns in the U.S.: spina bifida, in which there is incomplete closure of the spine, and anencephaly, in which the brain fails to develop fully. British researchers found that when women who had already given birth to a malformed child received folic acid supplements during a subsequent pregnancy, the chances of a second tragic birth fell sharply...
...Vitamin K, long known to promote blood clotting, appears to help bones retain calcium. Rapid calcium loss is a major plague among postmenopausal women, giving rise to the fragile-bones syndrome called osteoporosis. A recent Dutch study of 1,500 women ages 45 to 80 found that calcium loss (as measured in urine samples) could be halved with daily supplements of vitamin...
Most of the excitement, however, is being generated by a group of vitamins -- C, E and beta carotene, the chemical parent of vitamin A -- that are known as antioxidants. These nutrients appear to be able to defuse the volatile toxic molecules, known as oxygen-free radicals, that are a byproduct of normal metabolism in cells. These molecules are also created in the body by exposure to sunlight, X rays, ozone, tobacco smoke, car exhaust and other environmental pollutants...
...that brave new world, people might pop vitamins C and E to deter the development of cataracts, the clouding of the lens in the eye that afflicts 20% of Americans over 65. Patients taking high doses of both vitamins appear to reduce the risk of cataracts by at least 50%, according to a Canadian study. Vitamin C may be especially efficient because it concentrates in the eye. Scientists at the National Eye Institute estimate that if cataract ; development could be delayed by 10 years, about half of cataract surgery could be eliminated...
...Vitamin E may be particularly helpful in preventing free radicals from injuring the heart. Doctors speculate that giving the vitamin to patients during or shortly after a heart attack might help preserve heart muscle. One clue from a study at Toronto General Hospital: rabbits injected with vitamin E within two hours of a heart attack showed 78% less damage to heart tissue than was expected. The vitamin appears to speed recovery in patients who have had coronary-bypass operations, suggesting that nutrient supplements may one day become part of standard pre-op procedure...