NUTRITIONISTS HAVE advised against using vitamin and mineral supplements as a substitute for healthy eating, following a new report which found that some antioxidants may be harmful.
The review of 67 studies involving more than 230,000 people found "no convincing evidence" that antioxidant supplements reduced the risk of dying.
Vitamins A and E, traditionally used to help strengthen bones and improve circulation, showed if anything, increased rates of mortality, as did beta-carotenes, which are taken for healthy vision.
The studies reviewed involved different doses of each antioxidant, with the daily beta-carotene dose ranging from 1.2mg to 50mg and vitamin C ranging from 60mg to 2000mg daily.
Vitamin A was linked to a 16 per cent increased risk of dying, beta-carotene to a 7 per cent increased risk and vitamin E to a 4 per cent increased risk. Vitamin C, often taken to ward off colds, seemed to have no impact on mortality.
"The bottom line is that current evidence does not support the use of antioxidant supplements in the general healthy population or in patients with certain diseases," said Goran Bjelakovic, who carried out the review at Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark. It was published yesterday by the Cochrane Collaboration.
Margot Brennan, public relations officer for the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute said there was anecdotal evidence that people were using more supplements than ever and different combinations of supplements.
"Dietary supplements should not be taken instead of food," she said. "We would say that people should not take vitamin and mineral supplements unless they have been prescribed for them."
She said folic acid was an exception to this rule because it was difficult to get in the average diet and should be taken by all women of childbearing age to prevent neural tube defects.
Patrick Holford, a nutritionist who has formulated some supplements for the firm Biocare, described the Cochrane review as a "stitch up".
"Antioxidants are not meant to be magic bullets and should not be expected to undo a lifetime of unhealthy habits," he said.
"But when used properly, in combination with eating a healthy diet full of fruit and vegetables, getting plenty of exercise and not smoking, antioxidant supplements can play an important role in maintaining and promoting overall health." -(Additional reporting: Reuters, PA)
