Multivitamin prostate warning
MIL/Agencies, May 16, 2007.
May 16, 2007 - Taking lots of multivitamins may increase the risk of deadly prostate cancer, say US researchers. A study in nearly 300,000 men showed taking multivitamins more than seven times a week increased the risk of advanced and fatal prostate cancer.
There was no link with early cancer or localised prostate cancer, the researchers wrote in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Experts advised men to eat a healthy diet to reduce their risk of cancer.
The findings indicated the risk of advanced prostate cancer is 32% higher in men who take multivitamins more than once a day compared with those who do not take them at all.
Risk of fatal prostate cancer was almost double. The correlation was strongest for men with a family history of the disease, and who also took selenium, beta-carotene or zinc supplements. It is unclear why the multivitamins may increase the risk of certain types of prostate cancer.
Study leader Dr Karla Lawson from the US National Cancer Institute said: "The possibility that men taking high levels of multivitamins along with other supplements have increased risk of advanced and fatal prostate cancers is of concern and merits further evaluation."
Because multivitamins contain so many different components and men taking a lot of them were more likely to be taking other supplements, the researchers were unable to tease out what was causing the association.
In an accompanying editorial, European researchers said a high intake of fruit and vegetables has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer.
But it is not clear which nutrients have a positive effect.
Full Story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6657795.stm
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