Octacosanol Is A Source Of Vitamin E

Octacosanol is a solid white alcohol that is extracted from wheat germ oil. This substance is advertised as being the principle ingredient in wheat germ oil that supposedly promotes endurance, strength, and vigor.

Wheat germ oil is very high in vitamin E and is often used as a source of vitamin E for internal use or for external application to burns, sores, and other skin problems. The antioxidant properties of vitamin E make wheat germ oil more stable to oxidation or rancidity than many other oils.

Octacosanol is another active ingredient of wheat germ oil. Many users and manufacturers of octacosanol capsules claim that it enhances endurance, reaction time, and general vitality, yet these effects may take several weeks to notice. Though scientific research has not completely verified all of the claims, octacosanol appears to improve oxygen utilization, and thereby performance, particularly at higher altitudes or when under stress. It also has a mild cholesterol-lowering effect.

Wheat germ itself is a good source of protein, B vitamins, vitamin E, and many minerals, particularly iron, calcium, copper, magnesium, manganese, zinc, phosphorus, and potassium. Nutritionally, it is more balanced overall than its isolated oil, which is almost exclusively vitamin E plus other oils and is more caloric. We do, however, need some oils for tissue health and to obtain natural vitamin E, so wheat germ oil supplements can be a good addition to a low-fat or low-vitamin-E diet.

Not only is octacosanol useful in improving the way in which the body utilizes oxygen during exercise, but as a result, it's also quite helpful in boosting the body's levels of glycogen (a compound manufactured and stored in the liver which is, during short periods of strenuous activity, converted to lactic acid so that energy may be released in the muscles). Consequently, this helps to improve the physical performance of athletes, in addition to easing the pain associated with exercise. Studies have also shown that octacosanol may be helpful in treating those afflicted with neuromuscular disorders.

The premise and promise of ergogenic aid use is rooted in antiquity and is based upon superstition and ritualistic behavior of athletes who perceive that past performances were predicated upon unique dietary constituents or dietary manipulation. Accounts from ancient times recommended that athletes and soldiers preparing for battle consume specific animal parts to confer agility, speed or strength associated with that animal. Scientific understanding of the chemical and physiological nature of muscular work in the early 20th century was followed by ergogenic aid use by athletes and rationalized as "scientific" justification. Ergogenic aids such as alkaline salts, caffeine, carbohydrate and protein have been used by athletes with variable success. As nutritionists and exercise physiologists discovered and perfected the scientific understanding of metabolic reactions, athletes in turn experimented with the amount, form and timing of administration in the search for optimal performance. Anabolic steroids and blood doping enhance athletic performance, but health risks, ethics and sportsmanship contravene their use. Popularity and use of ergogenic aids often have preceded scientific substantiation of claims. Current products such as protein isolates and antioxidant nutrients commonly are used by athletes, and many ergogenic aids available today differ little from those used long ago.

In the 1960's, based on studies conducted in the US and Russia, wheat germ oil was touted as improving endurance, reaction times, stamina, and vigor. However, there has been considerable criticism about how these studies were conducted and the way the findings were interpreted. Also, the active ingredients that were supposed to cause the beneficial effects could not be identified. Some said it was the vitamin E; others pointed to the octacosanol as the source.

Eventually, the Federal Trade Commission analyzed many of the published studies and concluded that wheat germ oil did not have special fitness, athletic or health enhancing qualities. Advertisements saying wheat germ oil did have such attributes have since been banned.

Little government effort has been made to protect consumers from wasting money on "sports nutrient" products. The FTC took the action noted above against Weider Health & Fitness, the market leader. In 1986, the agency acted against A.H. Robins and its subsidiary, the Viobin Corporation, which had been making false claims for wheat germ oil products for more than fifteen years. The case was settled with a consent agreement prohibiting representations that the oil could help consumers improve endurance, stamina, vigor, or other aspects of athletic fitness, or that its active ingredient "octacosanol" is related in any way to body reaction time, oxygen uptake, oxygen debt, or athletic performance.

  • ELSON M. HAAS, MD. Staying Healthy With Nutrition. The Complete Guide to Diet and Nutritional Medicine
  • Patrick J. Bird, Ph.D. Health Benefits of Wheat Germ Oil. University of Florida Health and Human Performance
  • Elizabeth A. Applegate and Louis E. Grivetti. Search for the Competitive Edge: A History of Dietary Fads and Supplements. The Journal of Nutrition Vol. 127 No. 5 May 1997
  • Stephen Barrett, M.D. Victor Herbert, M.D., J.D. Don't Buy Phony "Ergogenic Aids". Muscle & Fitness 60(7):216-241, 1999.

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