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Recently, the benefits of Coenzyme Q10 have become increasingly well-known. Studies have proven this nutrient to improve heart function, reduce side effects of certain drugs used to treat cancer, and slow the progression of serious brain diseases, including Parkinson's disease. New research has shown that the active form of CoQ10, ubiquinol, can increase energy and stamina, and reduce some of the physical signs of aging.

CoQ10, a natural, fat-soluble nutrient, can be found in almost all cells. It is also known as ubiquinone because it exists everywhere there is life. Vital to ATP production, CoQ10 is produced by the body and exists in some limited dietary sources, but these levels may often be insufficient to meet the body's requirements. CoQ10 levels can diminish with age and as a result of dietary inadequacies and various disease states. Ubiquinol and CoQ10 are very closely related, as ubiquinol is the oxidized, active form of the CoQ10 molecule. Our bodies naturally convert CoQ10 to ubiquinol so that it is in the needed form to produce cellular energy. Because it was previously very unstable outside the human body, ubiquinol only recently has become able to be used as a supplement. Although our bodies can convert CoQ10 to ubiquinol, we do not do it equally well. As we age, our ability to convert CoQ10 to ubiquinol declines and some of us even have a gene that makes us less effective at converting CoQ10 than the majority of the population. For healthy males, an ideal ratio is approximately 97% Ubiquinol to 3% CoQ10, but the numbers for women vary by 2 to 5 percentage points. For older folks, the 30-50% of people who have the gene that impairs CoQ10 conversion, or for people who have serious health concerns, supplementing with ubiquinol instead of CoQ10 might be the smart choice. Many studies have shown that CoQ10 is beneficial in treating and preventing heart disease as well as other conditions such as high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, angina, and congestive heart failure. It's been proven that heart attacks usually occur when CoQ10 levels are low in the body. Additionally, CoQ10 helps with diabetes, immune dysfunction, cancer, periodontal disease, prostate cancer, and neurological disease. Although the research on ubiquinol is still extremely new, many expect that its benefits will be equal to or even better than CoQ10, because it is the more active form.

Because the heart and brain are some of the most active tissues in the body, both require large amounts of uninterrupted energy. Meaning, these tissues also need an increased amount of ubiquinol. Many people with heart or brain diseases have CoQ10 levels that are lower than those of healthy people. By correcting these deficiencies, significant results can be produced. According to studies done on patients admitted to the hospital with an acute myocardial infarction, CoQ10 can provide rapid protective effects in patients with a heart attack as long as it is administered within three days of the onset of symptoms. A second study, researching 109 patients with high blood pressure resulted in half of the patients being able to stop taking some or all of their prescription drugs after an average of 4.4 months after starting CoQ10. Congestive heart failure, a debilitating disease which affects 5 million people in the U.S., causes edema, difficulty breathing, and impaired circulation. Another study of CoQ10 proved that it can restore healthy heart function in CHF patients.

A study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health concluded that supplementing with CoQ10 in a unique delivery system was associated with a slowing of the progression of Parkinson's disease. Participants received 300 mg, 600 mg, or 1200 mg of a special form of chewable CoQ10, or a placebo. The researchers evaluated the participants after 1, 4, 8, 12, and 16 months of treatment and each participant was scored on motor, mental, and activities of daily living skills. The results of the study showed that the people who took the highest dosage of CoQ10-1200 mg-experienced the least decline in their physical abilities. These results were so encouraging that the researchers will be continuing with new studies, using higher dosages to see if the results can get even better. Huntington's disease, a devastating and degenerative inherited disease that is always fatal, has no other medication, drug, or nutritional supplement shown to cause a decline in the progression of this terrible disease. A study showed that CoQ10 may be able to slow the disease by an average of 15%. This means that HD patients who take CoQ10 can handle every day activities of life a little longer than the patients taking remacemide (an experimental prescription drug used for HD). The 15% slowing of decline can result in about one more year of independence of HD patients, which is incredibly significant. These impressive results give researchers hope that supplemental CoQ10 will have beneficial effects for people with other neurological diseases such as ALS and Alzheimer's disease, too.

One of the most interesting effects of Ubiquinol that has been reported so far is its ability to slow the physical signs of aging. In laboratory studies administered on mice, results showed that while the mice did not necessarily live longer, they lived better. However, human studies are needed to determined true impact on longevity. Stable ubiquinol has also been shown to increase physical energy and stamina.

A lot of supplements often have more than one function, especially a substance like CoQ10 that is present in all parts of the body. Because CoQ10 is vital to ATP production, it has applications not only in neurological and cardiac health, but also for the immune system. Although everyone can benefit from CoQ10 or an ubiquinol supplement, ubiquinol should be the first choice for older adults, those with known genetic inefficiencies of ubiquinol, and those with serious heart disease and neurological disease. For those who are in overall good health, a high quality CoQ10 supplement is a good choice. You should take about 200 to 300 mg of CoQ10 or 100 mg ubiquinol daily, depending on your health history. The safety of both forms has been tested, and no significant side effects reported. Although occasional mild stomach upset may occur, taking your CoQ10 or ubiquinol with meals usually alleviates this rare effect.