Risks of Vitamin Supplements Highlighted

Recent research sheds light on the value of vitamin supplements, with results indicating that taking too many supplements could be harmful.The research is forcing scientists to rethink the use of supplements with antioxidants, which had been seen as beneficial in preventing cancer, heart disease and other ailments.
"Everybody is confused," admitted Toren Finkel, head of the Center for Molecular Medicine at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
While logic would seem to dictate that taking vitamins and antioxidants should help fight illness and disease, Finkel said in an interview that the clinical data "are pretty consistently showing no benefit."
"So that means we have to go back and think about some of the assumptions we have made along the way in terms of what the mechanism for these diseases are and how things like oxidants play a role in those diseases," he told AFP.
Finkel explained that while it has long been believed that oxidants -- free radicals produced by the body or introduced through external sources such as pollution -- were unhealthy, the research paints a more complex picture.
"You have to go back to the lab and try to design experiments you can do a little simpler with cells or animals... to better understand the role of oxidants and vitamins," he said.
"For years, we were using these supplements without knowing the effects on the body."
Source:AFP