Lilly Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in the August 2016 edition of TTAC’s Heroes Against Cancer member newsletter.
Multivitamins are the most common dietary supplement consumed in the U.S. and are regularly taken by at least one-third of all American adults.
Traditionally, a daily multivitamin is meant to prevent nutritional deficiency – and the combination of essential vitamins and minerals in these supplements is designed to resemble healthy dietary patterns, including regular fruit and vegetable consumption.
vitamins
Multivitamins are supposed to provide the vitamins and minerals that would be obtained from healthy consumption of fruit and vegetables
Unfortunately, the official view of the mainstream medical establishment is that multivitamins do very little good. For instance, the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans bluntly states that: “For the general, healthy population, there is no evidence to support a recommendation for the use of multivitamin/mineral supplements in the primary prevention of chronic disease.”
Further, a State-of-the-Science conference sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) also concluded that present evidence is insufficient to recommend either for or against the use of [multivitamins] to prevent chronic disease.
These are surprising statements, especially considering that such evidence does exist – and in the public domain, too.
Are these so-called “experts” unaware of studies that show clear benefits of multivitamin supplements for chronic disease, and in particular, cancer prevention… or are they deliberately misleading us?
Interestingly, in a 2009 online survey, 900 physicians and 277 nurses were asked whether they used dietary supplements and whether or not they recommend dietary supplements to their patients. The “Life…supplemented” Healthcare Professionals Impact Study (HCP Impact Study) reported that 51% of physicians and 59% of nurses reported that they themselves used dietary supplements regularly.
Doctor and nurses
The HCP Impact Study revealed that 51% of doctors and 59% of nurses use dietary supplements regularly themselves and 79% and 82% respectively recommend them to patients
The most common reason they gave for using dietary supplements? To maintain their overall health and wellness, of course.
When asked whether they recommend dietary supplements to their patients, 79% of physicians and 82% of nurses said they did. So clearly these health professionals believe that supplements work.
The Research Shows a Different Story
Dr. Andrew Saul is the editor of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, with over 35 years of experience in natural health education. In 2006, he was named by Psychology Today as one of seven “natural health pioneers.”
As a proven expert, Dr. Saul differs from the establishment view that multivitamin supplementation has no effect on cancer risk and prevalence. In his view, there are a number of peer-reviewed studies that show strong correlations between supplements and reduced risk of various cancers.
One example is the Physicians’ Health Study II (PHS II), which looked at the effects of taking a common daily multivitamin supplement on overall cancer risk in over 14,000 male American physicians. The study clearly showed that multivitamin supplementation reduced overall cancer risk.
Similarly, a systematic review of 35 independent observational studies found that higher levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in the blood significantly reduced the risk of colorectal cancer. [Note: The 25-hydroxy vitamin D test is the most accurate measure of vitamin D in the body.]
Yet another study carried out in 2011 shows that that gamma-tocotrienol, a cofactor found in natural vitamin E preparations, reduces prostate tumor formation by an incredible 75%!
And there’s more…
But before we look at these studies in detail, let’s first understand how fruit and vegetable consumption impacts your cancer risk today. After all, produce has been the traditional source of health-giving vitamins and minerals in our diet for centuries – well before supplements entered the picture.
