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Tag: Vitamin E

  • The dangers of vitamin A and E supplements

    The dangers of vitamin A and E supplements

    Americans spend billions and billions of dollars on vitamin supplements each year. But too many supplements can deliver more harms than benefits, including liver injury, joint, muscle and vision problems, and hair loss. Beware. Vitamin supplements are not magic pills.

    Walter Willett, a professor of nutrition at the T.H. Chan School of Public Health advises against taking vitamin supplements; it’s almost never a good idea. Other experts say that you should only take vitamin supplements when you are not able to absorb vitamins appropriately through your diet.

    Part of the proper with supplements is that the FDA does not regulate them the same way it does prescription medicines. Consequently, ingredients in supplements might be harmful to you. One analysis of 57 supplements found that 80 percent of supplements do not contain the amount of ingredients they claimed to contain and 40 percent did not contain any of the ingredients they claimed to contain. Twelve percent of these supplements did not list some ingredients, as required by the FDA.

    Daryl Austin writes for National Geographic that vitamin A and E supplements can cause bodily harms because our bodies absorb them differently than other vitamins; they are fat soluble rather than water soluble.

    Vitamin C  and several B vitamins are water soluble; they dissolve easily and our bodies metabolize them quickly. If we have too much of them, we excrete them.

    We are best off getting vitamin A from eating sweet potatoes, spinach and carrots, among other vegetables. Vitamin A helps with our health immunities, reproduction and vision. But, it’s important not to have too much vitamin A. Too much vitamin A can actually kill you, in the worst cases, and harm pregnant moms and their fetuses, causing birth defects.

    We are best off getting vitamin E from eating fish, avocados, peanuts, hazelnuts and almonds. Vitamin E is an effective anti-oxidant that contributes to skin and vision health. But, excessive and even moderate amounts of vitamin E can cause serious harm, including increased risk of lung and prostate cancer, hemorrhaging and, according to some experts, death.

    Vitamin E supplements have also been found to interact poorly with other treatments, including chemotherapy and prescription drugs.

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  • Should you be taking vitamins?

    Should you be taking vitamins?

    Liz Szabo reports for the New York Times that older Americans are popping supplements like candy. Doctors may recommend certain vitamins like vitamin D and folic acid, and dozens of others are marketed widely. But, the evidence suggests that most of these supplements offer no health benefits for otherwise healthy individuals and that some ingredients in some supplements do harm. Should you be taking vitamins?

    If you are otherwise healthy, speak with your doctor. You should likely skip the vitamin pills and instead eat a balanced diet. The preponderance of independent studies on almost all supplements suggests that the benefits are at best negligible and the dangers, at times, significant. For example, the biggest studies show that  vitamin E and folic acid supplements do not promote heart health. What’s worse, the studies show that too much vitamin E can mean you are at higher risk of heart failure, prostate cancer and death from any cause.

    Still, nearly seven in ten older adults take at least one vitamin and nearly three in ten take four or more vitamins.  There appears to be a misplaced belief that you can get more of the nutrients you need from vitamin pills and that more vitamins in your system is better for your health. But, pills are generally no substitute for eating a healthy diet, some ingredients in some vitamins can cause serious health risks, and taking more vitamins can be harmful to your health.

    Before believing the “experts” and spending your money on a supplement, you might want to review the scientific evidence on www.Cochrane.org. Cochrane is a global independent network of researchers, professionals, carers, patients and people interested in health. The people at Cochrane “gather and summarize the best evidence from research to help you make informed choices about treatments.”

    You can read the independent research findings about these vitamins on Just Care:

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  • Vitamin E supplements: Should you take them?

    Vitamin E supplements: Should you take them?

    One question I bet you have because it’s one my patients ask me over and over again is which vitamin supplements you should be taking.  For example, should you take Vitamin E supplements? Before I can answer, I want to know what you’re eating because what you eat matters. If you are eating a balanced diet, there should be no need to take vitamin supplements.

    Today, I’ll talk about Vitamin E supplements. People mistakenly think that Vitamin E prevents certain cancers.  But, if you look at the studies relating to colorectal cancer, they show that Vitamin E does nothing to prevent colorectal cancer. Some people also mistakenly think that Vitamin E helps protect against Alzheimer’s.  But three different studies show that taking it has little or no benefit for people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or people with mild memory loss.

    What is also true is that the Vitamin E supplements, along with other vitamin supplements in high concentrations, carry risks. There is no evidence to suggest that taking too much Vitamin E from food is harmful to your health. If you are taking anticoagulants, talk to your doctor about Vitamin E supplements. They have been shown to interact with anticoagulants, which could lead to bleeding risks.

    In short, if your diet is balanced, you are probably getting enough Vitamin E.  Eating nuts, leafy greens, and any fortified foods Vitamin E can easily let you meet your daily recommended value of Vitamin E.  If you’re on a low-fat diet, be sure to eat leafy greens, since many low-fat diets may not provide you with enough Vitamin E.

    Don’t take a vitamin supplement without speaking with your doctor about it. A dietary change could help you avoid spending the extra money on supplements and the potential risks associated with them.

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  • John Oliver: When should you believe the science?

    John Oliver: When should you believe the science?

    When should you believe the science? John Oliver makes a compelling case on Last Week Tonight that you should not put much faith in what the media reports on the latest scientific studies. For example, you can find numerous studies showing that tea, tomatoes, beef and eggs cure cancer and many more showing that they cause cancer.

    The solution is not to disregard the science. But you should not give too much credence to individual studies. On top of small sample sizes in many studies, public relations firms often distort study findings and oversimplify the science.

    When it comes to health questions, we recommend that you visit www.cochrane.org to keep your faith in the science. Cochrane is an independent non-profit organization that looks at as many studies as possible on a particular health topic to provide the best assessment of what we know from the science.  Check it out. 

    In the meantime, watch the video below to learn more about the flaws in studies the media reports and have a good laugh, or cry. Also, check out Just Care advice on vitamin supplements, including vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D and vitamin E.

    http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Rnq1NpHdmw