According to USA Today (2/25, Painter), “Most vitamin and mineral supplements, alone or in combination, have not been proved to help or hurt when it comes to preventing cancer or heart disease, says a new report from the…US Preventive Services Task Force.” In the majority of “cases, more research is needed, but there are two exceptions, the panel says: Consumers should not take beta-carotene or vitamin E to prevent heart disease or cancer because vitamin E doesn’t work and beta-carotene increases the risk for lung cancer in people at high risk for the disease.”
Blogfinger Medical Commentary: By Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC
In 2011 when we finalized the current edition of our book “Prevention Does Work–A Guide to a Healthy Heart” we reviewed all the current data on vitamins and came up with this summary, “Vitamins used to be recommended as preventive therapy due to their anti-oxidant actions. In recent years, however, large trials have shown no benefit with vitamins, so these supplements can no longer be considered part of a prevention regimen. This conclusion does not apply to vitamins found in fruits and vegetables “
The AMA summary above brings us to 2014 on the subject of vitamin supplements. There was a 2012 trial of Centrum Silver which suggested that daily multivitamin use in men might reduce the risk of cancer, but the proof was iffy. The article below from Forbes is a brief and excellent review of the whole topic.
A huge number of people take vitamins regularly, but unless they have a vitamin deficiency, they are just engaging in wishful thinking. As a practicing doctor, some patients did confess that they took vitamin supplements. My reaction was to say that there was no good evidence as to benefit, and I reminded them that supplements are not always safe.
Do I take daily vitamins? No. But after the 2012 study, I hopefully bought a bottle of Centrum Silver, however, it still is sitting in a closet, with about 14 tabs missing—my personal two week trial.
EDITOR’S NOTE: I call your attention to the comment below where David Seres, MD, a genuine expert in nutrition and Associate Professor of Medicine at NY Presbyterian Hospital in NYC, has offered us a superb and erudite discussion of the roll of vitamin supplements in preventing disease.
David is also a Grover, one of many highly accomplished individuals who call Ocean Grove home. So, you see, you never know who might be in line with you at Days. —PG