Q. I think you have alarmed people unnecessarily with your thoughtless remarks on vitamin E. You said that applying vitamin E oil to scars did not help them heal faster. You should print a correction because pure vitamin E on incisions promotes healing.
A. When we find research demonstrating that putting vitamin E on wounds helps them heal without scarring, we will be prompt to write about it.
We found a review in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (Dec. 2006) that stated “vitamin E has complex effects on wound healing,” and concluded, “the evidence that topical vitamin E alone improves the cosmetic appearance of scars is poor. It is also associated with a high incidence of contact dermatitis. The use of vitamin E should, therefore, be discouraged.”
If a person plans to use vitamin E oil on the skin, she should test it first on the inside of the forearm to make sure she will not react badly.
