This article offers information on the antioxidant Coenzyme Q10 (Q10). Although the July/Aug 2003 HIV Nutrition Update addressed this topic, some of the information here is more recent. Older information is edited to avoid repetitiveness.

Question #1: I'd like to know more about the supplement Coenzyme Q-10. (July, 2000)

Answer: Donna Tinnerello, MS, RD, CD/N responds: (Administrator's Note: This response is re-posted from Donna's Q10 piece on the Always Your Choice web site. Read more articles that Donna has written on nutritional issues by visiting the web site and Click on "Nutritional Consultation".)

Q10 is a vitamin-like substance found in small amounts in foods and synthesized in all tissues. Organ meats, beef, soy oil, sardines, mackerel and peanuts are the best food sources.

Q10 is made in the body from the amino acid tyrosine and requires about eight vitamins and minerals for the process. Q10 is the coenzyme that is essential for the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is needed for all cellular functions. ATP is the only form of energy used by muscle cells, e.g. heart muscle. The heart, because it needs a continuous supply of oxygen, requires the highest levels of ATP support. Q10 is purported to have a role in the prevention and remedy of multiple disease processes and may help to slow the aging process.

Sometimes the biosynthesis process in the body might be faulty and the ability to synthesize Q10 is insufficient to meet the body's needs. This can happen with age but can also occur when there is excessive use in times of stress or inadequate nutrients needed to synthesize Q10.

Q10 is most extensively studied in heart disease such as cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure (CHF). Q10 also protects against the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which gets even more arthrogenic with oxidative stress. HMGCoA reductase inhibitors used to lower cholesterol, such as Lipitor and Mevacor, may decrease Q10 levels. Q10 levels are often lower in hyperlipidemic patients than in healthy controls. Smoking and hypertension lower Q10 levels as well.

In CHF, doses as small as 30-45 mgs/day were associated with measurable clinical responses. Q10 is fat-soluble and absorption is improved significantly when it is consumed with a fat-containing meal. Some patients have taken 100 milligrams (mg) per day with no adverse effects. 

Anecdotal information, which often precedes the science, abounds at this time.

Answer: Chester Myers, PhD, MS responds: (Administrator's Note: Though Chester has passed away, his articles continue to be a valuable resource. The following excerpts are pertinent to Q10. For the full text of these articles, and many others, go to the "HIV and Nutrition" section of the CATIE web site.)

Keeping vegetables (steamed to a 'still crisp' stage) in your diet is good for your teeth and gums (if you chew your food well!). In addition, Q10, an antioxidant, helps keep gums healthy. You must have enough of the B vitamins, including folic acid, and vitamin C to make Q10 in your body. It is available in red meats. Some people also take it as a supplement, usually at about 30-100 mg per day. It's non-toxic even at levels of several hundred mgs per day - but it's expensive! (From "Information relating to HIV & Nutrition: HIV & The Gut" - April, 1997)

Q10 is an important antioxidant that is very basic for our health. It is fat-soluble and found in membranes. Its synthesis depends on vitamins B3, B5, B6, C and folic acid, which makes it likely that it will be low with HIV infection. It is available as a supplement in 30 mg or 75 mg size tablets. This should not be considered to be as important as basic supplement- ation with a multivitamin with minerals, and additional vitamin B12, zinc, vitamin C, vitamin E and NAC! (From "Information relating to HIV & Nutrition: HIV & Cysteine revisited" - March, 1997)
 

Answer: Rachel Stern, MS, RD, CNS and Sharon Ann Meyer, AS, AA, DTR, note in the July/Aug 2003 HIV Nutrition Update feature article, "A Review Of Coenzyme Q10": Clinical trials conducted in Japan led to the approval of Q10 (trade name- Ubidecarenono) to treat cardiovascular diseases.

There are approximately 500-1500 mg of Q10 in the body but levels of the nutrient decrease after age 20 with brain levels markedly lower after age 50. Q10 is widely distributed in foods (Table 1) and daily dietary intake usually ranges from 2 mg (among vegetarians) to 20 mg (when organ meats are eaten). Aside from meats, fish, and poultry (especially heart, liver and kidneys), most foods contain only small amounts. Although Q10 is high in organ meats, beef, soy oil, sardines, mackerel, and peanuts it would take a huge portion of food to equal a low-dose dietary supplement.