Reader's Digest quotes Patricia Sheridan on vitamin E

Patricia Sheridan, PhD

July, 2009 Readers Digest articile “4 Ways to Strengthen Your Immune System” quotes Dr. Sheridan.

“In an outbreak, a deficiency of nutrients can be as dangerous as not washing your hands”. Many people don’t get enough vitamin E, a proven immune enhancer, says Patricia Sheridan, PhD, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. You need at least 15 mg of E daily, she says, which you can get in a generous handful of almonds (7 mg of E per ounce).

Erik Karlsson, & Patricia Sheridan, PhD

The elderly and people with weakened immune systems may need a supplement of 200 mg of E, Meydani believes. In her study of nursing home residents, supplementing with that amount cut the risk of colds and flu by about 20 percent. Don’t take more, though: One highly publicized study suggested that high doses (400 mg per day or more) can increase the risk of death.