Do you need to up your daily dosage in order to get maximum CoQ10 benefits? If you’re over 40, chances are the answer is yes.
Though the body generates its own supply of this crucial substance, there’s a biological irony at work: the amount of C0Q10 the aging body manufactures is inversely proportionate to how much it requires. Simply put, the older we get and the less of it we can produce, the more it we need.
Coenzyme Q10 is a naturally occurring vitamin-like substance that is found in the mitochondria, or energy production center, of every cell in the human body. It plays a unique dual role in maintaining health, functioning as both a key factor in the production of energy at the cellular level and as powerful antioxidant capable of preventing and even repairing cellular damage.
Essential To Health For Aging Hearts
A growing body of research indicates that CoQ10 is absolutely critical to heart health, particularly as we age. As an energy producer it is essential to efficient heart function, and clinical studies show that it has been a valuable adjuvant treatment for post-heart attack patients. In addition, a course of supplemental CoQ10 taken before heart surgery is believed to minimize post-surgical complications like arrythmias.
Protection Against Age-Related Illnesses
CoQ10′s formidable antioxidant properties make it invaluable in helping the body fight the ravages of free radicals, chemically unbalanced molecules that are formed as a byproduct when cells interact with oxygen. Free radicals scavenge and damage the cells with which they interact, and this damage has been shown to be a major factor in almost all age-related disorders.
Supplemental CoQ10 has proven to be a valuable addition to the treatment of a number of age-related conditions, including Parkinson’s Disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Though research is ongoing, it is believed that the coenzyme attacks these diseases on multiple fronts, enhancing the immune system and reducing neural inflammation with its energy producing capability and at the same time neutralizing and perhaps even repairing free radical damage.
How Much CoQ10 Do We Need?
No RDA has been set and experts disagree on the optimum amount needed to maintain health and achieve the maximum CoQ10 benefits. The average intake of the coenzyme is generally considered to be somewhere in the 30 – 90 IU range, but research appears to support significantly higher supplementation. In clinicsal trials dosages up to and even exceeding 1000 IU per day have been shown to have demonstrable positive effects.
There are no contraindications for supplementation but experts agree that it’s important to check with one’s physician before starting any supplements.
