Annatto tocotrienol, a potent form of vitamin E, was shown in a recent human metabolomics study to improve macronutrient metabolism, and modify over 100 metabolites related to oxidative stress and inflammation.
 
The study, appearing in Frontiers in Nutrition, utilized DeltaGold, an annatto-derived tocotrienol ingredient by American River Nutrition, involved 89 postmenopausal women. They were randomized to either receive a 300 mg dose or a 600 mg dose of the tocotrienol ingredient daily, and were compared to a placebo group.
 
Using a complex set of metabolomics data, a number of benefits were found among women who took tocotrienol in a dose-dependent manner. The authors of the study noted that tocotrienol was able to keep bone loss at bay over the 12-week study duration via its suppression of inflammation and oxidative stress markers.
 
“Tocotrienol and its metabolites were significantly higher in the treatment group after 12 weeks, where incorporation of tocotrienol restructured biomembranes and modified phospholipid metabolism to support anti-inflammation and anti-oxidation,” American River Nutrition reported.
 
Metabolomics profiling is a systematic screening approach for evaluating the metabolic response to nutritional interventions, and is primarily done to assess changes in a biochemical profile with shifts in physiology. In total, it detects 767 biochemicals, characterizing them into amino acids, cofactors, vitamins, lipids, nucleotides, peptides, and xenobiotics.
 
In the participants, tocotrienol conserved methionine to increase cysteine and glutathione, and decreased homocysteine. It also reduced catabolism of tryptophan to conserve this amino acid, and tyrosine for protein synthesis, while modifying microbiome- and detox-friendly metabolites, the authors concluded. These modifications are associated with the redox environment, which in simple terms constitutes a reduction in chemical reactions associated with an increased oxidation state.
 
Of interest from a cellular health standpoint, annatto tocotrienol was incorporated into tissue cell membranes, improving phospholipids in favor of long-chain fatty acids. “The present study supports our previous findings that [tocotrienol] supplementation helps reduce bone loss in postmenopausal osteopenic women by suppressing inflammation and oxidative stress.”  

Foundational Structure-Function Insights 

“This is the first time ever that annatto tocotrienol was shown to globally affect the nutritional biochemistry in the human body, rather than treating a condition as was the focus of prior studies,” Dr. Barrie Tan, president of American River Nutrition, said. “This is the type of study structure-function claims are built upon, a Holy Grail in the dietary supplement industry that’s nearly impossible to reach. Annatto tocotrienol resets the body’s nutritional metabolism and redirects endogenous nutrient biochemistry. This first-of-a-kind study shows an unambiguous nutritional benefit of tocotrienol to everyone, especially for adults and postmenopausal women.”