Studies have found that taking multivitamins doesn’t help you live longer.
Scientists have found that healthy adults who take a daily multivitamin are no less likely to die from any cause than those who don’t, they say in a new paper in the journal Neurology. JAMA Network Open.
Therefore, there is no association between taking multivitamins and a reduced chance of death.
Multivitamins usually contain a combination of essential vitamins and minerals. While the exact ingredients vary depending on the brand and formulation, typical ingredients include vitamins A, C, D, E, and K, several B vitamins, and minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, and manganese.
“In the United States, nearly one in three adults report recent multivitamin (MV) use; prevalence is higher among older adults, women, non-Hispanic whites, and those with a college education. Motivations for MV use include maintaining or improving health and preventing chronic disease; therefore, understanding the relationship between MV use and mortality is crucial for public health guidance,” the authors write in the paper.
Previous studies have found conflicting evidence about the association between mortality and multivitamin use and have been limited by short follow-up periods for participants.
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In the paper, the researchers describe how they analyzed data from nearly 400,000 healthy American adults with no history of cancer or chronic disease over the past 20 years. They found no reduction in risk of death from any cause, including cancer, heart disease, or cerebrovascular disease, associated with multivitamin use.
“In this cohort study of 390,124 generally healthy US adults with over 20 years of follow-up, daily MV use did not confer any mortality benefit,” the researchers wrote. “In contrast, we found a 4% increased risk of death with daily MV use versus non-daily use.”
The authors explain that this may be due to the type of people trying multivitamins: people with age-related health problems may be more likely to take multivitamins.
“Sick individuals and those aged 65 years or older may be more likely to initiate MV use. Because these individuals are at higher risk of mortality than healthy and younger individuals, this phenomenon may result in a non-causal positive association,” the researchers wrote.
The researchers adjusted their analysis to account for a range of confounding factors, including race and ethnicity, education, and dietary quality and control, to account for the fact that healthier people are generally more likely to use multivitamins.
The researchers note that the study has several limitations.
“First, this is an observational study, and residual confounding from poorly measured or unmeasured confounders (e.g., health care utilization) may bias risk estimates,” the researchers wrote. “Second, misclassification of non-differential exposures may occur due to misrecall regarding sporadic MV use.”
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