If you find out that you have important nutrients missing for your diet it can be very tempting to start taking supplements. After all, supplements can seem like the easy answer. They offer a quick and easy way to get your daily intake of the most important vitamins and minerals. But a new report has questioned whether supplements are really as good as everyone seems to think.
The report, published in Harvard Women’s Health Watch, warns that supplements may not always deliver their supposed health benefits and that in some cases they can even be dangerous if people regularly exceed the recommended allowances.
Previous studies have suggested that vitamin D supplements can offer a huge variety in aids to wellbeing. These include defending the body against cancer, diabetes and depression. Omega-3 fatty acids are reported to be able to reduce the risk of strokes, while vitamins C and E have been recommended to use against heart disease.
However, the new study argues that many of the studies into supplements were not tested against a placebo group and as such the research is not especially trustworthy. The studies also did not take into account the patients’ diets and exercise routines.
The original studies of vitamin E concluded that it could protect the heart. However, when the testing was performed on a larger, controlled scale they showed that it also increased the risk of bleeding strokes.
It’s a similar story for folic acid and B vitamins too. Lauded in previous trials for their ability to ward off heart disease and strokes, they were somewhat derided in later studies as taken in high doses they were linked to an increased risk of cancer.
Overall, it’s clear that if nothing more, extensive research needs to be taken place into the benefits and the dangers of using vitamin supplements.
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