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2002:
From USANA's Science Information Services
The
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
recently reversed a long-standing anti-vitamin policy by publishing
two scientific review articles recommending
multivitamin supplements for all adults.
The significance
of this policy change is reflected in the historically conservative
stance of the American Medical Association (AMA) and other respected
health organizations that have not been willing to advocate or acknowledge
the potential benefits of vitamins in the prevention of degenerative
disease. Traditionally, the AMA has been hesitant to routinely recommend
vitamin supplements, except during pregnancy or to treat specific
nutritional deficiencies.
Robert H. Fletcher,
MD, MSc, and Kathleen M. Fairfield, MD, DrPH, of Harvard Medical
School and the Harvard School of Public Health, reviewed more than
30 years of science papers regarding vitamins in relation to chronic
diseases and published their findings in two companion articles.
In the scientific
review article, the researchers write that the North American diet
is generally sufficient to prevent overt vitamin deficiency diseases
such as pellagra, scurvy, and beriberi. However, they explain, 'recent
evidence has shown that suboptimal levels of vitamins, even well
above those causing deficiency syndromes, are associated with increased
risk of chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, cancer
and osteoporosis.'
In a clinical
commentary, they note that 'a large proportion of the general population'
has less-than-optimal intakes of a number of vitamins, exposing
them to increased disease risk. In addition, they counsel that,
'it appears prudent for all adults to take vitamin supplements.'
From the body
of evidence they reviewed, they concluded the following:
- Folate and
Vitamins B6 and B12 are required for homocysteine metabolism and
are associated with decreased coronary heart disease risk.
- Folate may
decrease the risk of neural tube defects and certain cancers such
as colorectal and breast cancers.
- Vitamin E
and lycopene may decrease the risk of prostate cancer.
- Vitamin D
is associated with decreased occurrence of fractures when taken
with calcium.
Fletcher and
Fairfield advise using, 'multivitamins, rather than individual
vitamins, because multivitamins are simpler to take and cheaper
than the individual vitamins taken separately and because a large
proportion of the population needs supplements of more than one
vitamin.' For a decade, USANA
Health Sciences has been a leader in providing high quality
nutritional supplements containing optimal levels of vitamins, minerals
and other important nutrients. Now finally, the medical community
is acknowledging the value of nutritional supplements for disease
prevention. Poor nutrition and poor lifestyle choices have an immediate
impact on health and the development of chronic degenerative diseases
later in life. It is obvious that most of us receive less-than-optimal
intakes of a number of nutrients from our diets, and supplementation
is a convenient and effective way to improve an inadequate diet.
References:
Fairfield
KM, Fletcher RH.
Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: scientific
review.
JAMA 2002; 287:3116-3126.
Fletcher RH, Fairfield KM.
Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: clinical applications.
JAMA 2002; 287:3127-3129.
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