By Scott Cody, PharmD
Coenzyme Q10 or CoQ10 is a substance produced by the body that is essential for the transfer of energy. It was discovered in 1957 by Fred Crane, a Wisconsin biochemist. Crane enlisted the help of Karl Folkers, who was a scientist for Merck. Eventually, Merck decided to sell all patent rights of CoQ10 to a company in Japan.
There was much interest in finding the role of CoQ10 in patients with heart failure. These patients and those undergoing heart surgery had levels of CoQ10 in blood and tissue that were significantly below normal levels.
It was British biochemist Peter Mitchell who discovered the role of CoQ10 in the transport of electrons in cell mitochondria. The mitochondria uses the electron transport ability of CoQ10 to create ATP. Mitchell eventually was awarded a Nobel prize for his work with CoQ10, which dramatically increased interest in this fantastic substance.
I mentioned that CoQ10 is a natural product produced by the body. It requires the liver to start with the amino acid tyrosine. Eight vitamins and a few trace minerals are also necessary to create the final product, Coenzyme Q10. Do we all have adequate vitamins and trace minerals essential for this production? Unfortunately, we do not. Our nutritional status is on the rocks because of the declining nutrient content of the commercial food supply and added chemicals, fertilizers, GMOs, and herbicides like glyphosate.
You may have heard of drug-drug interactions. This type of interaction is where one drug can adversely affect the performance of another drug. Well, there are also drug-nutrient interactions. I will speak “med-speak” for a few moments and list the classes of drugs that adversely affect the performance and production of CoQ10. Depletion of CoQ10 can be caused by oral contraceptives, statins, antipsychotics, thiazide diuretics, adrenergic stimulants, tricyclic antidepressants, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), most chemotherapy drugs, beta-blockers, and hypoglycemic including sulfonylureas and biguanides.
Did I mention that the body’s CoQ10 production decreases with age? It is pretty apparent that as we age and if we eat the standard American diet and start taking pharmaceuticals for chronic conditions, our levels of CoQ10 will be deficient.
Let’s say, for example, that you are approaching 50 years old, love fast food and pizza, never exercise, and have high blood pressure and high cholesterol. You take meds for these conditions, and you find out that you need to supplement your CoQ10 levels. How do you go about finding a decent product to take?
The chemical names for CoQ10 are ubiquinone and ubiquinol. You can buy CoQ10 in either form, but you should know that when you take ubiquinol, the gastric acid changes ubiquinol to ubiquinone before it is absorbed. Ubiquinone is circulated throughout the body and provides antioxidant protection before the cell needs energy transport.
CoQ10 supplements are best when taken with a meal that contains some fat. Because fat-soluble supplements are difficult to assimilate, the additional fat will make it easier for the body to utilize the supplement. If you want to get the highest blood levels of CoQ10, you should take divided doses multiple times a day rather than a large single dose. Another issue is that we cannot absorb crystals, only single molecules. Many commercial products of CoQ10 in soft gel capsules contain crystals that severely limit the body’s uptake.
There is still much interest in researching the benefits of CoQ10. Now that scientists understand the absorption difficulties, there has been an attempt to standardize the dose forms to prevent variable absorption during a study. The primary factors preventing crystals from forming are the oil composition in which the CoQ10 is dissolved and the heating and cooling process before filling the soft gel capsule.
Pharma Nord is a Danish company that has spent the last 30 years producing quality CoQ10 products formulated for scientific studies to produce reliable results. There have been 78 human studies to date that have used Bio-Quinone Active CoQ10 Gold, and 26 of these studies are the gold standard (randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled).
What conditions can Coenzyme Q10 help? The antioxidant effects are on par with vitamin C. If you are trying to bolster your immune system, then CoQ10 would be a logical choice to add to your regimen. Research has occurred in the following areas: breast cancer, prostate cancer, reducing chemotherapy side effects, neurological conditions (Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease), Longsjoen Hypertension study, Q-Symbol study (heart failure), and others concerning hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and cardiac arrhythmias.