BOSTON, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- About a third of American
adults take some type of multivitamin on a regular basis. In nearly every
case, the goal is better health, even though there is no firm evidence to
support this hope. The absence of benefit is one thing, but the presence of
harm is another: A 2007 report in the Journal of the National Cancer
Institute concluded that there was an increased prostate cancer risk among
men using multivitamins, reports the October 2007 issue of Harvard Men's
Health Watch.
When scientists further explored this finding, they found no link
between multivitamin use and the risk of developing localized prostate
cancer. But they did find that men who take multivitamins more than once a
day were 32% are more likely to develop advanced prostate cancer and 98%
more likely to die from the disease.
However, the study had its limitations. For example, it was not
designed to determine whether multivitamins actually caused cancer; it did
not ascertain which multivitamins were taken; and the results failed to
establish a relationship between dose and response. Moreover, other studies
have shown no connection between prostate cancer and multivitamins. Faced
with this contradictory information, scientists know they need more
studies, and several are already under way.
Meanwhile, what should you do? Harvard Men's Health Watch suggests that
a good diet and other lifestyle changes may help lower your prostate cancer
risk. As for vitamins, the new study cautions against excessive
multivitamin use, but it does not show harm from a daily supplement that
sticks to the recommended daily amounts of the standard vitamins. Above
all, the new study adds to the growing body of evidence that tells us not
to count on supplements.
Also in this issue:
-- Opening blocked arteries
-- Growing old healthfully
-- On Call: Cholesterol rings in the eyes; painful leg cramps
Harvard Men's Health Watch is available from Harvard Health
Publications, the publishing division of Harvard Medical School, for $24
per year. Subscribe at http://www.health.harvard.edu/men or by calling
1-877-649-9457 (toll free).
Media: Contact Christine Junge at Christine_Junge@hms.harvard.edu for a
complimentary copy of the newsletter, or to receive our press releases
directly.
Harvard Health Publications
Contact: Christine Junge
Christine_Junge@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-4717
SOURCE Harvard Men's Health Watch
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