Some researchers speculate that the aging process itself is the result of years of accumulated damage by free radicals. Free radicals are highly reactive substances that result from normal metabolism and from exposure to environmental factors like cigarette smoke and ultraviolet light. Vitamin E is indispensable for good health. Every cell in the body needs some, but it is especially important in protecting blood cells, the nervous system, skeletal muscle and the retinas of your eyes from free-radical damage. Vitamin E works with other antioxidants, such as vitamin C and selenium, to help protect the body from damage caused by these free radicals.
Vitamin E is a broad term that refers to a family of compounds.
There are two groups of vitamin E compounds, the tocopherols and the tocotrienols. Each of these comes in four slightly different chemical shapes. Alpha-tocopherol is the only form of vitamin E that meets the human requirement. The alpha-tocopherol version is usually combined with an approved food additive, such as acetate, nicotinate or succinate to prolong the supplement's shelf life. Both natural and synthetic alpha-tocopherol are absorbed.