Posted on 10/10/2011 3:03:13 PM PDT by decimon
CHICAGO – Consuming dietary supplements, including multivitamins, folic acid, iron and copper, among others, appears to be associated with an increased risk of death in older women, according to a report in the October 10 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals...
The use of dietary supplements in the United States has increased considerably over the last decade, according to background information in the article. "At the population level, dietary supplements contributed substantially to the total intake of several nutrients, particularly in elderly individuals," the authors write.
Jaakko Mursu, Ph.D., of the University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland, and the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, and colleagues used data collected during the Iowa Women's Health Study to examine the association between vitamin and mineral supplements and mortality (death) rate among 38,772 older women (average age 61.6 years)...
Among the 38,772 women who started follow-up with the first survey in 1986, 15,594 deaths (40.2 percent) occurred over an average follow-up time of 19 years. Self-reported supplement use increased substantially between 1986 and 2004, with 62.7 percent of women reporting use of at least one supplement daily in 1986, 75.1 percent in 1997 and 85.1 percent in 2004.
The authors found that use of most supplements was not associated with reduced total mortality in older women, and many supplements appeared associated with increased mortality risk. After adjustment, use of multivitamins, vitamin B6, folic acid, iron, magnesium, zinc and copper, were all associated with increased risk of death in the study population. Conversely, calcium supplements appear to reduce risk of mortality. The association between supplement intake and mortality risk was strongest with iron, and the authors found a dose-response relationship as increased risk of mortality was seen at progressively lower doses as women aged throughout the study.
(Excerpt) Read more at eurekalert.org ...
Ping
we’re all gonna die....
This is the 3rd such article I have read, just today alone.
I guess the government (FDA) wants to regulate this..or tell us we are not allowed to have
Ginger
Elderberry
Cinnamon
Ginseng
Garlic
etc...
I was told 25+ years ago not to take vitamins containing iron supplement.
Funny how all these studies are coming out these days. Women don’t need breast cancer screening, men don’t need PSA tests. Vitimins will kill you.
Almost like the govt wants people to die.
I have a theory that people who drink water tend to die. Can I have a few million dollars to study this?
This is not news.
However, the left just hates supplements (or any decision that one might make themselves), and they're not above torturing epi data in order to make their case.
Also, the term "self reports" can be an indicator of a poorly controlled study.
.
If you have undiagnosed hemochromatosis, taking iron supplements would speed up your demise.
As an “older woman” myself, I do expect to die.....will y’all come to my funeral? LOL!
I've read the same for older men. Copper too. And I've read that iron interferes with the absorption of...a B vitamin?
“I guess the government (FDA) wants to regulate this..or tell us we are not allowed to have Ginger Elderberry Cinnamon
Ginseng Garlic etc...”
Yep...just the other day they tried to tell us that walnuts are a drug. Don’t you dare do anything to support your own health without permission from the govt (and said permission is NOT forthcoming).
Best way to get nutrition is by eating real food.
I recall the conversation with a research physician. He described that the lower rate of cardiovascular morbidity/mortality in women of child-bearing age may actually be due to monthly blood loss during menstruation, which results in the concurrent loss of iron. His argument was compelling enough that I’ve been taking “Silver” multi-vitamins for more than 25 years. Senior vitamins don’t have iron supplement.
I eat a fair amount of wild-caught fish .... Gotta have my mercury.
Yellow-fin tuna tonight.....Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm-e-r-c-u-r-y!!!
Maybe there was a point to the old practice of blood letting. It served to take out the excess iron.
And maybe the real reason why red meat is bad for you has nothing to do with saturated fat but because of all that iron, which may oxidize cholesterol and cause arterial plaque.
I have found that if you are elderly and in a hospital setting every person who passed away had a chair near them.
Clearly there is a direct effect as the chair has -————————— in it.
Too much iron in that luncheon food.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.