Vitamin E (Alpha-Tocopherol)
Measures alpha-tocopherol, the main form of vitamin E in blood, to check whether you have enough of this fat-soluble vitamin.
AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert reviewAlso called Vit E, a-tocopherolLOINC 1823-4
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What it is
Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin that protects cell membranes from damage. Alpha-tocopherol is the form your body keeps and carries in the blood along with fats. Foods rich in vitamin E include nuts, seeds, plant oils and leafy greens. Because vitamin E travels with blood fats, your result can rise and fall with your cholesterol and triglycerides.
Why it matters
True vitamin E deficiency is uncommon in healthy people. It mostly happens when the body can't absorb fat or move vitamin E around, and it can cause balance and nerve problems, weak reflexes, vision changes and a type of anemia. The test is mainly used for people with fat-absorption problems or certain inherited conditions, and to follow supplements.
If it’s low
A low result can be a sign that your body isn't absorbing fat well or that you are getting too little vitamin E. Low blood fats can also make vitamin E look low. Under about 5 mg/L (500 µg/dL) is the cutoff US national survey reports use for deficiency.
Common causes
- Problems absorbing fat, such as cystic fibrosis, chronic pancreatitis, celiac disease, Crohn's disease, short bowel or liver and bile duct disease
- A very limited diet or poor nutrition
- Very low cholesterol or other blood fats
- Rare inherited conditions that affect vitamin E transport, such as ataxia with vitamin E deficiency
- Premature birth in newborns
What can help
- Talk with a clinician about the cause, especially if you have a condition that affects fat absorption
- Include vitamin E-rich foods such as nuts, seeds, plant oils and leafy greens
- Ask whether your other fat-soluble vitamins (A, D and K) should be checked too
If it’s high
High results usually come from vitamin E supplements. High cholesterol or triglycerides can also raise vitamin E because it travels with blood fats. Very high supplement doses over time may affect blood clotting, so it is worth reviewing with a clinician.
Common causes
- Vitamin E supplements or multivitamins
- High cholesterol or triglycerides, because vitamin E travels with blood fats
What can help
- Review your supplements and their vitamin E content with a clinician
- Ask whether your result should be read alongside your cholesterol and triglyceride levels
Usual ranges
What labs print as the reference range, by who was tested. Ranges differ a little between labs, so the range on your own report is the one your result is judged against.
The usual range depends on age. Choose an age to see the one that applies.
Children and teens 2 ranges
- 13–175.5–18 mg/L
Source: ARUP Laboratories
- 2–125.5–9 mg/L
Source: ARUP Laboratories
See Vitamin E by age and sex, with the U.S. survey numbers where they exist.
Deficiency cutoff used in NHANES prevalence reports (serum alpha-tocopherol below 500 ug/dL)
- Deficiencybelow 5 mg/L
- Above the deficiency cutoff5 and above mg/L
How common is your level?
NHANES describes the US civilian, non-institutionalized population, not a 'healthy' reference group. People with disease, on medication, fasting or not (except fasting-subsample markers), smokers and so on are all included. A percentile says where a value sits among Americans of that sex and age, not whether it is normal.
Use the left and right arrow keys to read each age. Shift moves five years.
Reference data derived from CDC/NCHS National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), cycles 2017-2018. Analysis by bloodtesttracker.com; not endorsed by CDC, NCHS or HHS.
Explore Vitamin E by age and sex: every percentile as a table, with a download.
What can affect your result
- Blood lipids: results move with cholesterol and triglycerides, and some labs compare vitamin E with total lipids
- Age: children's intervals are lower and rise with age
- Fasting for 12 hours and avoiding alcohol for 24 hours before the draw (ARUP)
- Light exposure of the sample
- Vitamin E supplements and multivitamins
- Blood fats move vitamin E up or down, so high cholesterol or triglycerides can raise the result and low blood fats can lower it.
- The sample must be protected from light (Mayo Clinic Laboratories uses an amber tube).
- ARUP asks patients to avoid alcohol for 24 hours before the draw.
- Vitamin E supplements and multivitamins raise the result.
Morning, after a 12-hour fast. Changes gradually, typically over weeks to months. No standard timeline is published.
When to talk to a clinician
Talk with a clinician soon about new problems with balance or walking, numbness or weakness, or vision changes, especially if you have a condition that affects fat absorption. Get urgent care for sudden weakness, trouble speaking or severe confusion.
Questions you could ask
- Should this result be read together with my cholesterol and triglyceride levels?
- Could a vitamin E supplement or my cholesterol and triglyceride levels explain this result?
- Is my current supplement mix still right for me?
- Could a problem absorbing fat explain a low level?
- Should my other fat-soluble vitamins be checked as well?
Questions people ask
Why might my vitamin E look high or low if my diet hasn't changed?
Vitamin E travels in the blood with fats, so your cholesterol and triglyceride levels affect the result. Some labs and studies compare vitamin E with total blood fats to account for this.
How do I convert mg/L to µmol/L?
Multiply mg/L by 2.32. For example, 10 mg/L is about 23 µmol/L. mg/L is the same as µg/mL, and mg/dL is 10 times larger than mg/L.
Show the science and sources
Units
- 1 mg/L = 1 mg/L
- 1 mg/L = 2.322 µmol/L
- 1 mg/L = 0.1 mg/dL
- 1 mg/L = 100 µg/dL
Open the Vitamin E unit converter
Is a change real?
Vitamin E naturally varies about 13.8% from test to test in the same healthy person. Between two results from the same lab, a change of roughly 43% or more is unlikely to be day-to-day noise or lab variation (95% reference change value). Source: Desirable Biological Variation Database specifications, 2014 update (Minchinela J, Ricos C, et al.; the 'Ricos database', a compilation of median published CVI/CVG).
For clinicians and researchers
Serum alpha-tocopherol is measured by LC-MS/MS (Mayo) or HPLC and is carried in lipoproteins, so concentrations track total lipids. In adults with fat malabsorption, a plasma alpha-tocopherol to total lipid ratio below 0.8 mg/g is considered the most accurate indicator of deficiency (European Consensus on Malabsorption, 2025). NHANES prevalence reports classify deficiency as serum alpha-tocopherol below 500 ug/dL (5 mg/L). Mayo reports 5.5-17.0 mg/L for adults and 3.8-18.4 mg/L for ages 0-17; Quest reports 5.7-19.9 mg/L for adults; ARUP reports 5.5-18.0 mg/L for ages 13 and older and age-banded lower intervals in infants and children (1.0-3.5 mg/L in the first month rising to 5.5-9.0 mg/L at 2-12 years). ARUP also reports gamma-tocopherol separately (0-6.0 mg/L), which is its own marker here. Causes of deficiency include fat malabsorption (cystic fibrosis, short bowel, inflammatory disease) and rare inherited disorders of vitamin E transport. Mayo and ARUP both report LOINC 1823-4.
LOINC 1823-4 (primary), 14590-4. Specimen: serum-or-plasma.
Sources
- Vitamin E, Serum - Test ID VITE (Mayo Clinic Laboratories Extended Catalog), Mayo Clinic Laboratories
- Vitamin E, Serum or Plasma (test 0080521), ARUP Laboratories
- The Prevalence of Nutritional Imbalances in the US Population Over Time: Biomarker Data from the Cross-Sectional National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 1999-2000 through August 2021-August 2023), Current Developments in Nutrition (2026)
- European Consensus on Malabsorption - UEG & SIGE, LGA, SPG, SRGH, CGS, ESPCG, EAGEN, ESPEN, and ESPGHAN: Part 2: Screening, Special Populations, Nutritional Goals, Supportive Care, Primary Care Perspective, United European Gastroenterology Journal (2025)
- Micronutrient, Vitamin E (Quest Diagnostics test, adult intervals as listed by Fullscript), Fullscript (listing Quest Diagnostics test data)
AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert review. Last reviewed 2026-10-03. How we build and check these pages.