File Vitamin Therapy[1]

Vitamin therapy: Any Science? Advertising schemes and sensationalistic media shamelessly promote all types of health remedies that have no scientific backing. Vitamin sales are the backbone of this multibillion dollar industry. Unfortunately real science (consisting of randomized, blinded, placebo controlled studies) fails to support these claims in terms of meaningful end points. There is a synergy of absorption and utilization of vitamins and nutrients through consumption of natural/ unprocessed foods that cannot be duplicated in pill form. Vitamins, anti-oxidants and fish oils all have fantastic health benefits when consumed as a component of their natural food source but not when provided through supplements.

U.S Preventative Services task Force- evidence is INSUFFICIENT for or against Vitamins A,C,E, Multivitamin (MVI) with folic acid or antioxidant therapy for cancer prevention or cardiovascular disease. Nutr Clin care. 2003 oct-dec;6(3):1027 National Institutes of Health (NIH) State of Science Conference on MVI/ Mineral Supplements and Chronic Disease prevention.found few rigorous studies on which to base clear conclusions and recommendations. NIH Consensus State Sci Statements. 2006 May 1517;23(2):1-30 The Efficacy and Safety of Multivitamin and Mineral Supplement Use to Prevent Cancer and Chronic Disease in Adults: A Systematic Review. Conclusion- No proven benefit.

Ann Intern Med. 2006 Sep5;145(5): 372-85 Johns Hopkins study: Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials- NO protective effects of antioxidant or B vitamin supplements on atherosclerosis progression. Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Oct;84(4) 880-7 What about Omega -3’s? Meta-Analysis of over 600,000 pts showed NO clear benefits of reducing mortality or combined cardiovascular events. CMAJ. 2008 Jan15;178(2):181-182 Gilbert S. Chandler, III, M. D. L. Todd Stewart, M. D.