About the importance of vitamins N and P in medicine, Aleksandar Zivkovic spoke with the Sydney University Professor Dr Ostoja Vucic.
Vitamin N or Alpha-lipoic acid is a vitamin-like chemical called an antioxidant. Yeast, liver, kidneys, spinach, broccoli, and potatoes are good sources of Vitamin N.
Vitamin N or Alpha-lipoic acid is used for diabetes and nerve-related symptoms of diabetes including burning, pain, and numbness in the legs and arms.
Some people use Vitamin N for memory loss, chronic fatigue syndrome, HIV/AIDS, cancer, liver disease, diseases of the heart and blood vessels (including a disorder called cardiac autonomic neuropathy and Lyme disease. .
Vitamin N is also used to treat eye-related disorders, such as damage to the retina, cataracts, glaucoma and an eye disease called Wilson's disease.
Vitamin P, more commonly known as bioflavonoids, or flavonoids, are not strictly true vitamins, though they possess vitamin-like properties.
They are a vast array of compounds found in plants, and are classified as plant pigments. These pigments, over 4000 of which have been identified, are responsible for the dazzling colors of fruits and flowers.
Most flavonoids are powerful antioxidants that help neutralize harmful free radicals and prevent oxidative stress which damage cells and DNA, and which can lead to aging and degenerative diseases like cancer and Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease.
Vitamin P enhances the effects of the other antioxidant vitamins, and increases levels of glutathione, an important and powerful antioxidant.
Also reduces risk of cardiovascular disease and heart attack by lowering LDL cholesterol level and stopping blood platelets from clumping, which minimises blood clotting and prevents build-up of atherosclerotic plaque on artery walls as effectively as aspirin, but without its side effects.
Vitamin P is also known to lower hypertension (high blood pressure) and so lessen risk of stroke and heart disease.
