Vitamins supplements don't increase longevity

In fact, the study, from Denmark, suggests that certain supplements such as beta carotene, Vitamin A and Vitamin E may actually shorten life. The study, carried out by Christian Gluud, of the Centre for Clinical Intervention Research in Copenhagen, used reviews of nearly 70 randomised studies on the effects of vitamin or antioxidant supplements.

The beneficial effects of fruit and vegetables are well known, but most people do not eat enough in their diet and so take supplements. Antioxidant supplements are marketed as a way to overcome the damaging effects of free radicals in the body. Researchers suggest that the reason some of the supplements are positively harmful is that they could be damaging the body's own immune defence systems.

Gluud and colleagues pooled the data of nearly 70 studies that included 200 000 participants. They found that Vitamin A supplements increased the risk of death in healthy participants by 16% and that beta-carotene and Vitamin E were associated with a 7% and 4% increase respectively. They found no evidence that Vitamin C supplementation caused harm, but then they found no evidence of any benefit either.

The reviewers have called on governments to urgently look at the regulations governing the sale and vitamin and antioxidant supplements - a multi-million dollar industry across the globe.

Read the full article here http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/homepages/106568753/CD007176.pdf