Multivitamins Should be Taken By Everyone, According to AMA

Nutrition Review

By VRP Staff

In two articles published in the June 19th issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers from Harvard Medical School have recommended that everybody—regardless of age or health status—take a daily multivitamin. Drs. Kathleen M. Fairfield and Robert H. Fletcher report that the elderly, those on restrictive diets and even people eating a normal diet, may not be getting enough of certain vitamins.

For example, studies have shown that taking folic acid can help prevent certain birth defects, while others have suggested the vitamin might cut the risk of certain cancers and heart disease. Other vitamins, such as vitamin E, have been shown to decrease cancer risks, and vitamin D supplements are proven to reduce the risks of bone loss and fracture in the elderly.

Fletcher and his colleagues reviewed studies published between 1966 and 2002 that pointed to links between vitamin intake and diseases such as cancer and coronary heart disease. Noting that vitamin deficiencies are linked to a wide range of illnesses, Fletcher commented that It’s rare to find a health-promoter that offers such a substantial benefit with a relatively low cost and low risk of problems, and when you have such a thing, he added, you ought to jump on it.

The reports point out that certain people are at higher risk of vitamin deficiency, particularly the elderly, who are less able to absorb vitamins from their diet. Vegetarians who avoid all animal products were also at risk, facing a risk of not getting enough of certain fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin D and vitamin B-12.

Even those who follow what Fletcher called a super-perfect diet are unlikely to get enough of certain vitamins in their diets and would benefit from multivitamins, as well.

Discussing the problem of getting doctors to recommend vitamins to their patients, Fletcher explained that some physicians may not understand the importance of vitamin deficiency and may fail to recommend multivitamins. Additionally, vitamins are considered to be somewhat of an alternative therapy and some doctors have this prejudice against anything that’s not very orthodox.