Why vitamin E matters for men’s health

In this article:

• What does vitamin E do for men?
• Vitamin E benefits for men
• Forms of vitamin E
• Dietary sources
• Recommended daily intake
• Are supplements necessary?
• Risks of overdose
• The bottom line

In this article

• What does vitamin E do for men?
• Vitamin E benefits for men
• Forms of vitamin E
• Dietary sources
• Recommended daily intake
• Are supplements necessary?
• Risks of overdose
• The bottom line

You might have a skincare product in your bathroom cabinet right now containing vitamin E, thanks to its proven reputation as a powerful moisturizer and skin barrier protector. But did you know that getting enough vitamin E in your diet might be even more important than slathering it on your skin?

Vitamin E is actually not just a single vitamin. It’s a group of eight fat-soluble compounds derived from plants and plant oils that provide major antioxidant benefits to the body. For men, especially, vitamin E plays an important role: Not only can it improve the quality of your sperm and boost fertility, but it can also lower your risk for heart disease and liver disease (both of which are more common in men than in women, FYI). Here are five ways vitamin E can benefit men’s health, plus how to get more vitamin E every day. 

Why every man should pay attention to vitamin E

Vitamin E has many benefits for men and women, but its antioxidant effects make it a key nutrient for men in particular. 

Vitamin E plays an important role in supporting the immune system and protecting the body from oxidative damage caused by free radicals, according to Jonathan Jennings, MD, internist with Medical Offices of Manhattan. (In case you don’t know, free radicals are unstable molecules that, in large amounts, can cause damage to your body’s healthy cells. Over time, that damage—known as oxidative stress—increases your risk for chronic or serious health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.)

Here’s where nutrients with antioxidant properties, like vitamin E, can help: Antioxidants repair and sometimes even prevent some of this cellular damage, reducing your risk for illness. 

5 health benefits of vitamin E for men

Getting enough vitamin E can lower the risk of health conditions that are common in men, including infertility caused by poor sperm quality, heart disease, liver disease, and certain types of cancer. Keep reading to learn more.

1. Better sexual health

Vitamin E may play a supportive role in maintaining male reproductive health. The antioxidant properties of vitamin E help protect sperm cells from oxidative stress, which can damage their structure and function, according to registered dietitian and author Lauren Manaker, MS, RDN.

One study suggests that oxidative stress contributes to lower sperm quality because sperm are highly vulnerable to damage from free radicals. Oxidative stress may negatively impact sperm motility and morphology (their movement and shape), increasing the risk for male infertility.

2. Cardiovascular benefits

In the U.S., heart disease is a primary cause of death for both men and women, but men are more likely to have a heart attack and often experience one at an earlier age than women by almost seven years. That makes heart health an important point of care for men, though the evidence of the effects of vitamin E on the heart is somewhat mixed.

Some older research has linked a higher intake of vitamin E to a lower risk of heart disease. One study, for example, suggests vitamin E’s cardiac benefits may come from a decrease in low-density lipoprotein (i.e.,  the “bad” kind of cholesterol) and build-up of plaque in the arteries, both of which promote better overall heart health. However, newer studies haven’t always found the same results: While one study found vitamin E supplementation generally doesn’t reduce cardiovascular events, another study suggests the benefits are more noticeable in people with certain health conditions, such as diabetes. 

3. Improved liver health

Men are also at a higher risk of certain common types of liver disease than women, including cirrhosis, alcohol-related liver disease, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) up to a certain age. (MASLD is the new name for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD.)

Studies suggest that oxidative stress is a major cause of NAFLD-associated liver injury, and that vitamin E may protect against that specific type of oxidative stress. One study found that a higher intake of vitamin E was associated with a lower risk of NAFLD, results confirmed by a liver ultrasound test called elastography, which assesses the health of liver tissue. The evidence is strong enough that the American College of Gastroenterology recommends vitamin E for the management of certain liver conditions for specific patient populations.

4. Prevention of certain eye disorders

In the U.S., about 1 in every 100 people older than 50 has an advanced stage of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that could ultimately cause vision loss; that number jumps to 1 in every 10 for people older than 80. 

Although vitamin E alone hasn’t been proven to prevent the onset of AMD, there is more evidence supporting the use of a combination of vitamins and nutrients called AREDS 2 vitamins (based on the Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2, which researched their effectiveness). According to the AREDS 2 study, people with early to intermediate AMD who took 400 IUs of vitamin E in combination with specific amounts of vitamin C, zinc, copper, and other nutrients had a better chance of avoiding progression to advanced AMD.

5. Stronger immune system  

Because vitamin E can prevent damage caused by oxidative stress, it holds a lot of power for your immune system. Manaker says not only does vitamin E help protect immune cells from free-radical damage, but it also supports the production of T-cells, which are essential for fighting infections. 

One study suggests these effects could be more evident in older adults, reducing the incidence of infections like pneumonia and the flu as well as chronic illnesses like asthma. Meanwhile, another study found that vitamin E supplements may have enhanced the effectiveness of immunotherapy treatments for people with melanoma, thereby improving survival rates.

Different forms of vitamin E

Remember how we said vitamin E is not a single vitamin, but a category of eight different compounds? It can get confusing, but before you choose a vitamin E supplement, it’s important to understand the differences between the forms. 

There are 2 categories of vitamin E molecules: tocopherols and tocotrienols. At the cellular level, tocopherols and tocotrienols have different chemical structures, but we won’t dig into that here since it’s not relevant for most consumers. From there, tocopherols break down into 4 subgroups: alpha, beta, gamma, and delta; tocotrienols are differentiated by changes in location of certain organic compound groups on a shared common ring structure Again, there’s a lot of molecular biology happening here that you don’t need to know, but basically, the individual subgroups have different numbers of chemical groups that set them apart from one another. 

Your takeaway? All these molecular differences between various forms of vitamin E influence how your body utilizes it.

The most common form of vitamin E found in supplements is alpha-tocopherol. It’s the most bioavailable, which means your body absorbs and uses more of it compared to all the various forms of vitamin E. Finally, alpha-tocopherol is split into two categories: d-alpha-tocopherol (the natural form) and dl-alpha-tocopherol (the synthetic form). It is available as international units, or IUs.

Dietary sources of vitamin E

Depending on your diet, you may be getting plenty of vitamin E through the foods you eat every day. Vitamin E is found in many plant-based foods. Good sources of vitamin E include:

• Sunflower seeds
• Vegetable oil
• Wheat germ
• Almonds, hazelnuts, and peanuts (and nut butters)
• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Mangoes
• Tomatoes
• Avocadoes
• Green leafy vegetables
• Fortified breakfast cereals

Recommended daily intake and optimal dosing

According to Manaker, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin E is 15 milligrams (22.4 IU) per day for adults. If you’re supplementing, you can technically go up to 1,000 mg (1,500 IU) per day, she adds, but that’s the upper limit. It’s not generally recommended to take that much unless a provider is supervising your supplementation.

It’s actually pretty uncommon to have a vitamin E deficiency in the U.S., but if you think you’re not getting enough or may be deficient, talk with your provider. They may recommend that you get blood drawn for a vitamin and nutrient panel to identify any dietary gaps, which can help them tell you exactly how much vitamin E you should supplement with.

Are supplements necessary?

Dr. Jennings says dietary sources are preferred for vitamin E, but supplementation may be necessary for some people. Because it is a fat-soluble vitamin that’s stored in your body’s fatty tissues (and is absorbed better when you consume enough dietary fat), it can be hard for certain people to get the right amount of vitamin E.

“Most people can get enough vitamin E from a balanced diet that includes nuts, seeds, vegetable oils, and leafy greens,” says Manaker, “however, people with fat malabsorption issues, like Crohn’s disease, cystic fibrosis, or chronic pancreatitis, [may need to consider supplementation].”

Similarly, if your diet is extremely low in fat, you might not get enough vitamin E without a supplement since it’s found in so many foods that contain fat, Manaker adds.

If you’re shopping for a supplement, look for one containing d-alpha-tocopherol, the natural form. This one is better absorbed and utilized by the body than the synthetic form, says Manaker, so it’s the best option for supplementation. Make sure you also choose a supplement with some kind of third-party testing or certification, so you know the product contains the ingredients it claims to.

Potential risks and side effects of excessive vitamin E

The main risk associated with getting too much vitamin E is increased bleeding and a higher risk of hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in the brain).

This risk may be higher for people with existing bleeding disorders, people receiving chemotherapy or radiation, and people with a history of cardiovascular disease who are taking anticoagulants (blood thinners) like aspirin or warfarin, says Dr. Jennings. It may not be safe for these people to take supplemental vitamin E.  Taking high doses of vitamin E with vitamin K is not recommended. That’s because vitamin E can interfere with vitamin K’s blood clotting ability, increasing your risk of bleeding

There is some debate over whether high amounts of vitamin E increase your risk for prostate cancer or not. Some studies suggest vitamin E supplementation may lower a man’s prostate cancer risk if they are current or past smoker, but more research is needed. Other studies have found no evidence that vitamin E is related to the risk of prostate cancer, while still others have found a slightly increased risk related to high supplementation levels. If you have a history of prostate cancer, it’s important to talk with your healthcare provider before adding supplemental vitamin E to your diet.

Bottom line

Vitamin E has several potential benefits for men’s health, including improving fertility and preventing some diseases that are more common in men, like heart and liver disease. It may also strengthen the immune system and protect against age-related eye conditions. It’s not a panacea, though; just one part of the health puzzle.

Most people aren’t truly deficient in vitamin E and can get more than enough by eating foods rich in vitamin E, but some people might benefit from taking a supplement. Aim for at least 15 mg per day, but don’t go over 1,000 mg; too much of this vitamin can increase your risk for serious bleeding.