Changes in Serum Retinol, α-Tocopherol, Vitamin C, Carotenoids, Zinc and Selenium after Micronutrient Supplementation during Alcohol Rehabilitation

Abstract

Objective: To test the effect of a 21-day supplementation with moderate doses of antioxidant nutrients on biochemical indicators of vitamin, carotenoid and trace element levels in alcohol-dependent patients during a program of alcohol rehabilitation.

Design: A randomized double-blind trial was performed comparing two groups receiving daily either a combination of micronutrients (beta-carotene: 6 mg, vitamin C: 120 mg, vitamin E: 30 mg, zinc: 20 mg, selenium: 100 μg) or a placebo.

Subjects: 106 alcohol-dependent patients 20 to 60 years of age without severe liver disease, hospitalized for a 21-day rehabilitation program.

Measure of Outcome: Vitamin C, retinol, α-tocopherol, zeaxanthin/lutein, β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, α- and β-carotene, zinc and selenium were measured in serum, initially and after supplementation.

Results: (1) In the placebo group, after 21 days of rehabilitation, serum concentrations of vitamin C and all five carotenoids significantly increased, whereas retinol and α-tocopherol concentrations decreased; zinc and selenium levels were unaffected. (2) At the end of the hospital stay, serum indicators were significantly improved in the supplement group as compared to the placebo group for vitamin C, α-tocopherol, β-carotene, zinc and selenium; conversely, lycopene changes were higher in the placebo group than in supplement group. (3) Of the serum antioxidants measured at entrance, only vitamin C was significantly depleted in heavy smokers, and, after the supplementation period, vitamin C was efficiently repleted in this later group.

Conclusion: Our results indicate that a short-term supplementation with physiological doses of antioxidant vitamins, carotenoids and trace elements during alcohol rehabilitation clearly improves micronutrient status indicators. Heavy smokers in particular seem to respond to vitamin C supplementation.

• supplementation
• serum
• retinol
• α-tocopherol
• β-carotene
• carotenoids
• vitamin C
• zinc
• selenium
• alcohol rehabilitation

• ROS = reactive oxygen species
• AST = aspartate aminotransferase
• ALT = alanine aminotransferase
• GGT = γ-glutamyltransferase
• BMI = body mass index
• RBP = retinol binding protein
• MCV = mean corpuscular volume
• Apo = apolipoprotein

We are grateful to the laboratory department of the Centre de Médecine Préventive (Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy) and the clinical staff of the Service de Médecine L—Alcoologie of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (Nancy).

Especially, we thank Maryvonne Chaussard, Dominique Aguillon, Colette Voirin and Sylvie Michel from the Centre de Médecine Préventive (Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy), Annette Petitjean, Isabelle Ponsart, Catherine Rives and Carmelina Scarano from the Service de Médecine L—Alcoologie (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Nancy), Françoise Duchenne and Marie-Claude Riard from the Laboratoire de Physiologie (Faculté de Médecine, Dijon), Dominique André, Dominique Blondelle et Marie-Christine Bouillet from the Département de Biologie Intégrée (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Grenoble) and Pilar Galan from Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale—U 557 (Paris).

Notes

This work was supported by grants from the Institut de Recherches Scientifiques sur les Boissons, the Université Henri Poincaré (Nancy) and the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (Paris).