For a long time, vitamin E has been widely used as a cardiovascular supplement because of its “blood vessel softening” effect. However, recent scientific studies have surprised us by showing that the effects of vitamin E are not as rosy as we thought. Therefore, it is necessary to re-understand this to avoid falling into misconceptions. Vitamin E, also known as vitamin E, is a fat-soluble vitamin that comes in eight forms. It is found in most of our daily diet, such as in cooking oils, grains, fruits, vegetables and meat products. It is an important antioxidant and is therefore often used in creams and lotions because it is believed to promote healing and reduce scar formation after injuries such as burns. Vitamin E is also known as a daily health supplement. In 1922, foreign experts discovered that a fat-soluble dietary factor was essential for normal reproduction in rats, and in 1924 this factor was named vitamin E. In subsequent animal experiments, scientists found that mice deficient in vitamin E suffered from heart, liver and muscle degeneration and were infertile; rats deficient in vitamin E were permanently infertile in males and unable to carry full-term fetuses in females. In the 1980s, medical experts discovered that vitamin E deficiency in humans could lead to genetic and metabolic diseases. As research progressed, medical experts also recognized that vitamin E has a wide range of effects in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, tumors, diabetes and other complications, central nervous system diseases, motor system diseases, and skin diseases. Thus, it can be seen that vitamins have a powerful pair of health functions. Does vitamin E only have an all-purpose health effect without side effects? In a recent study, the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine/American Heart Health Association/Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) gave us the answer: its study and paper stated that commercially available high units of vitamin E, cannot prevent heart disease or cancer. On the cardiovascular front, long-term use of high doses of vitamin E can cause cardiovascular-related disease. The most obvious toxic effect of long-term vitamin E >1000 mg/d is antagonism of the action of vitamin K and enhancement of the action of oral coumarin anticoagulants resulting in anticoagulant effects, thus increasing the risk of hemorrhagic stroke with long-term high dose intake. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (Heart Outcome Prevention Evaluation Trial), researchers randomized subjects over 55 years of age to two groups, one containing 400 international units of vitamin E supplements and the other taking a placebo. Each subject either had heart disease, diabetes, or at least one risk factor for myocardial infarction or stroke. What was found through the study: There was no difference in the results of the trial. The number of people who had a myocardial infarction or stroke did not differ significantly between the two groups, and the number of people who died from cardiovascular disease was roughly equal. This proves that although no side effects were found, taking vitamin E does not counteract the negative effects of smoking, eating high-fat foods and other unhealthy lifestyles. In addition, in the study, cardiovascular disease was three times higher in patients of advanced age with diabetes who took higher doses of vitamins than in those of advanced age with diabetes who did not take vitamins. Thus, we can see that high doses of vitamin E can cause cardiovascular-related disease, but not prevent cardiovascular disease. Moreover, in diabetic patients of middle and high age, it increases the cardiovascular incidence. In terms of anti-cancer, the intake of low doses of vitamin E has an antioxidant effect and improves the body’s immunity, thus having an anti-tumor effect. Epidemiological data also show that vitamin E intake in humans is negatively correlated with tumors. However, the intake of high dose vitamin E can reduce the decrease of SOD activity and increase the content of MAD, when vitamin E becomes a pro-oxidant; in addition, the intake of high dose vitamin E can hinder the absorption and function of other fat-soluble vitamins, these factors increase the incidence of tumor. A study by the National Cancer Institute [3] confirmed that men who took 400 mg of vitamin E daily for years were 17% more likely to develop prostate cancer than those who took a placebo control group. Therefore, although vitamin E has some tumor-preventing effect, its intake of vitamin E has a negative effect on their health instead. Therefore, grasping the intake of vitamin E is the key point that vitamin E can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and cancer. The following is the per capita daily intake of vitamin E recommended by the Food and Nutrition Division of the National Academy of Sciences Medical Institutions: Mg/day Age Infants 0 to 6 months 7 to 12 months Toddlers 1 to 3 years old 4 to 8 years old 9 to 13 years old Adolescents and young adults 14 years old and above In China, health care products are now popular in the market, a variety of vitamin E tablets and capsules are readily available to consumers, in addition to the role of businessmen, exaggerated the role of vitamin E role, yes, consumers blindly ingest vitamin E, thus bringing not only economic losses to their own children, there may be potential health risks. “Too much is not enough” is our popular idiom, also in the intake of vitamins, not the more the better, the right supplement is the way! Taking high doses of vitamins can be harmful. Recently, the U.S. Prevention Expert Working Group has changed the health food supplementation of vitamin E to “not recommended (D)” for the purpose of preventing heart disease and cancer. In general, the vitamin content of vegetables and fruits in food is sufficient to meet the body’s vitamin needs.