What is the difference between CoQ10 and Ubiquinol?

You’re not alone if you’re confused about the difference between Coenzyme Q10 and Ubiquinol and which one you should be taking. Lucky for you, we’re here to help you discover the benefits of each.

What does Coenzyme Q10 actually do?

Our body is threatened by free radicals daily, from pollution, a poor diet and various environmental factors. It is these free radicals that cause our body to age and may also contribute to a compromised immune system and in turn poor overall health.

CoQ10 is an antioxidant which is used to produce energy within every single cell in the body. It helps to protect against free radicals and supports the immune system and increases its ability to fight off disease and infection.

The main benefit of CoQ10 is to the heart. A double-blind, randomised trial found that CoQ10 improved heart health, and may actually reduce the risk of dying from heart-related diseases by almost half.[i]

What does Ubiquinol do?

Ubiquinol is the active form of CoQ10, and is more effective way to improve your antioxidant levels. It is more readily absorbed in the body than CoQ10 and has also been shown to help maintain a healthier heart and LDL cholesterol levels. Ubiquinol may also help reduce muscle pain by up to 54% and muscle weakens by 44%.[ii]

If you’re 20 years or older, you should be including a ubiquinol supplement into your daily health routine, as your body doesn’t convert CoQ10 into Ubiquinol as easily as you age. This can be seen below in Figure 6.

If your cholesterol levels seem to be high, you may have been prescribed statin medication. Why not chat with your GP or healthcare practitioner about including a Ubiquinol supplement to counteract the damage which can occur from this medication, as statins reduce your store of CoQ10.

[i] https://www.escardio.org/The-ESC/Press-Office/Press-releases/First-drug-to-improve-heart-failure-mortality-in-over-a-decade

[ii] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23183519