CoQ10 is a vitamin-like substance required by the body to transform food into cellular energy. Amazingly, it is so essential to life processes that, without it, life would cease to exist in a matter of minutes!

Although CoQ10 may be synthesized in the body and found in food, deficiencies do exist. Refining and processing robs our food supply of this essential nutrient. Moreover, to synthesize CoQ10, the body must have a healthy liver and an adequate supply of other nutrients that are also often lacking in the diet. Consequently, after about age 35, CoQ10 levels in the body begin to diminish. Studies have shown that if levels decline by 25%, our bodies won’t have enough cellular energy to stay healthy. A decline of 75% is fatal.

CoQ10 is essential to energy production in the body. Without sufficient CoQ10, none of the systems in the body can function optimally because they simply do not have enough fuel to do their job. The systems most sensitive to deficiencies are those with high energy needs such as the cardiovascular and immune systems. In addition to energy production, CoQ10 also offers important antioxidant protection in the cells. The combination of antioxidant protection and energy production creates the clinically documented benefits people experience when they supplement with CoQ10.

When scientists and researchers first began to study CoQ10, they found the highest concentrations in the heart, the immune system and the liver. This makes sense as these are also the cells that require the most energy. Focusing on these CoQ10 hungry cells, research and clinical trials began to reveal some very impressive findings and results. They first found that people with poor health have insufficient levels of CoQ10 in their systems while healthy people have normal levels of this vital nutrient. This finding lead scientists to explore the effects of supplementing with oral CoQ10. Truthfully, their findings have been remarkable. A multitude of clinical trials demonstrated that CoQ10 is very useful in the treatment and prevention of congestive heart failure, angina, arrhythmia, myocardial degeneration and high blood pressure. In one study 80% of patients with severe congestive cardiomyopathy showed significant improvement after they began supplementing daily with CoQ10. In another, over 50% of high blood pressure patients were able to eliminate their hypertension medications after 5 months of daily CoQ10 use. Japanese physicians recommend it regularly to over 12 million of their patients. Imagine the positive effects of supplementing with CoQ10 before serious problems develop! The Medical Hypotheses journal published in England suggested that preventative supplements would be more useful as “insurance” if CoQ10 was regularly included.

Studies on CoQ10 and the immune system have resulted in similar findings. Like the cardiovascular system, the immune system is highly energy-dependent. Conditions such as allergies, Candida overgrowth, cancer, AIDS, chronic fatigue, and periodontal disease are all a result of immune system dysfunction. Immune system function does decline with age, stress and poor nutrition. Numerous clinical trials have documented an overall improvement in immune system function among the participants using CoQ10 daily.

CoQ10 protects our health in yet another profoundly significant way. As CoQ10 levels decline, the incidence of symptoms we associate with aging tend to increase. This is related not just to insufficient cellular energy, but also to CoQ10’s antioxidant activity. Too little oxygen in a cell results in a lack of energy; too much results in free radical damage. CoQ10 balances the oxygen through adding or subtracting oxygen from biologically active molecules. This is why it is important to actually have more CoQ10 in the cell than is required for ATP production. The excess CoQ10 is able to offer superior antioxidant protection while at the same time enabling the cell to produce its full capacity of energy.

The body’s need for CoQ10 never diminishes. As long as we are breathing, we need CoQ10. After a deficiency has occurred, studies indicate that it takes some time for tissue levels to rebuild. For this reason, it is advisable to supplement with CoQ10 for at least 5-6 months before evaluating its beneficial effects.

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