Not full of Life and Energy? CoQ10 may be the reason!

CoQ₁₀: Ubiquinone or Ubiquinol?

The discussion of which form of CoQ₁₀  to use, has been widely publicised of late.

Ubiquinol is a whitish substance which is slightly soluble in water. 

Ubiquinone is a bright yellow, fat soluble substance which is the oxidised form of CoQ10. It is the fat soluble nature of the molecule together with the fact that both molecules have a very long structure which affects CoQ10's bioavailability as an oral supplement. 

Many people say that ubiquinone is the 'inactive' form of CoQ10 but this is incorrect. The two most important roles of CoQ10 are:
 1) to help in producing cellular energy. Without energy, the cells DIE. During this process ubiquinol is oxidised to ubiquinone and
 2) its second crucial role is to help quench the free radicals created during the energy production cycle, During this process, ubiquinone is reduced back to ubiquinol.

Every single cell therefore requires both forms of CoQ10 to survive. As CoQ10 has two extra electrons, there is actually a third, in-between form of CoQ10 in which only one electron has been shared (a half-oxidised molecule which can move either way) and all three forms are very active in each cell. Most of the CoQ10 is located inside the mitochondrial membrane and cells (such as heart muscle cells) which work the hardest, have the largest numbers of mitochondria and therefore also CoQ10.

CoQ10 is really quite marvellous! 

CoQ10 is produced in the same production process which produces cholesterol in the liver. With age the amount of CoQ10 produced, decreases. In addition, certain medications interfere with the process and result in a deficiency of CoQ10 and therefore the cells have too little energy to maintain their life processes. These cells can NOT continue to function and DIE!

Medications interfering in the body's production of CoQ10 include:
Statins
Birth control pills
Beta-blockers
Phenothiazines (Schizophrenia)
Tricyclic anti-depressants
etc
as well as a deficiency of Vitamin B6

Symptoms include muscle cramps, weakness, heart failure, mental and physical fatigue, high blood pressure, general aches and pains and many more.

How to improve Bioavailability:
• Due to the fat soluble nature of CoQ10, it is best taken after a meal containing some form of dietary fat.
 • One way of ensuring better absorption is by mixing the CoQ10 (take the powder out of the capsule) with a small amount of a good quality, full fat yoghurt (such as natural Greek or Bulgarian yoghurt) the night before to ensure that it is already 'dissolved' in the fat by the time you eat it.
• Taking Vitamin E at the same time reduces the absorption of CoQ10 as well as blood levels of CoQ10. This may be due to competition. Vitamin E is also important, so to prevent competition, take your Vitamin E at lunch time and CoQ10 at breakfast and/or dinner.
 • Several of the B-Vitamins are crucial to the production and function of CoQ10. If you are not using a B-Complex, it may be worth supplementing Vitamin B6 in particular.

To remember when using:
• For maintenance purposes use as per dosage on the label (in hot summers or during strenuous exercise, use up to 3 caps per day if needed).
 • For therapeutic purposes the dosage on the label may be insufficient. Consult a doctor willing to test the blood levels in order to determine the optimum dosage. If this is not possible, please contact us for a general guidelines where needed. In particular, recent research has shown that for therapeutic purposes, a minimum blood value of CoQ10 is required for a lengthy period (some patients only began to experience real improvement after using significantly higher doses and having the required minimum blood levels for 3 -6 months).
• The use of CoQ10 may have some slight side-effects (e.g. nausea, diarrhoea, less appetite, heartburn) but NO serious side-effects have been found even at doses of up to 1200mg per day. If using more than the indicated dosage, side effects can be minimised by dividing the dosage over more than one meal.
• Do not use if you are pregnant or breast-feeding
• If using anti-coagulation drugs make sure to check blood coagulation more regularly for the first two weeks to ensure that there is no change.

For more information on the Staywell CoQ10 product, please contact us on 012 804 7918