A major study released Wednesday by the National Institutes of Health found that multivitamins don’t extend life expectancy, even though one in three U.S. adults take them. This may be surprising, since the primary motivation for taking a multivitamin is to prevent disease and extend healthy lifespan.
The researchers looked at data from three large US cohort studies that began in the 1990s and followed 390,124 participants for up to 27 years. The adults in the study had no history of cancer or other chronic diseases and an average age of 61.5 years. In this large study, 54.6% were women and more than 40% were never smokers.
Considering the approximately 160,000 deaths that occurred during follow-up, the researchers concluded that taking multivitamins do not have It was associated with reduced mortality, with multivitamin users having a 4% higher risk of death compared with non-users.
Taking vitamin supplements can also have negative health effects: Dr. Neal Barnard of the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences wrote in a commentary accompanying the study that beta-carotene has been found to increase the chances of developing lung cancer, multivitamins containing vitamin K may reduce the effectiveness of warfarin (a blood-clotting drug), too much iron increases the chances of developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and dementia, and calcium and zinc may interfere with the absorption of some antibiotics.
Duane Mellor, a registered dietitian and senior lecturer at Aston Medical School, said: Parents“It is not surprising that these do not significantly reduce the risk of death.
“Vitamin and mineral supplements cannot alone improve an unhealthy diet, but they can help to make up for important nutrients that are difficult to get from food. An example of this is vitamin D, which UK adults are recommended to take as a winter supplement, and vegans and vegetarians who may benefit from vitamin B12 supplements.”
However, the study authors wrote, “we cannot exclude the possibility that daily multivitamin intake may be associated with other health outcomes related to aging.”
What were the shortcomings of this study?
In his commentary, Dr. Bernard criticized the narrow focus of the studies, stating, “The mortality data do not reflect potential benefits that do not impact lifespan in older cohorts. Supplementation with beta-carotene, vitamins C, E, and zinc is effective in slowing the progression of age-related macular degeneration. In older adults, multivitamin supplementation is associated with improved memory and slower cognitive decline.”
“These findings support the argument that, whenever possible, people should get their vitamins from food sources rather than supplements,” he added. “Micronutrients are healthiest when obtained from food sources. If supplements are necessary, they are often limited to the micronutrient in question.”
“We could all benefit from including more vegetables, whole grains, and legumes in our diets,” Dr. Jade A. Coburn, MD, MPH, a board-certified pediatrician and general preventive medicine physician, told ABC News, but “if your doctor prescribes vitamins, it’s important to take them.”
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