| People take Vitamin E -- most often in doses of 400 I.U. a day --
for a number of reasons. It is believed that Vitamin E can help ease hot
flashes and other symptoms of menopause, prevent colds, maintain
respiratory health, and prevent heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer's
disease. Those with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and other
illnesses also often take Vitamin E because it is believed to boost
immune function and ease muscle pain.
That wisdom is now being called into question ... within reason.
According to a new study by associate professor of medicine and
epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University Dr. Edgar R. Miller III in
which researchers compared the results from 19 clinical trials involving
135,967 participants, it was concluded that there were 39 additional
deaths per 10,000 people in those who were taking dose of Vitamin E that
exceeded 400 international units a day.
According to an article in The New York Times, Dr. Miller
presented the data at a recent meeting of the American Heart
Association in New Orleans.
Not everyone agrees that the study is necessarily cause for alarm,
however. According to The New York Times article, Harvard
statistician Dr. James Robins says the risk suggested by the study is
"hardly definitive evidence." In fact, one physician interviewed for the
article -- Dr. John Hathcock, the vice president for scientific and
nutritional affairs at the
Council for Responsible
Nutrition -- said that he has been taking 400 I.U. of Vitamin E
daily and has no intention to stop.
Sources:
Large Doses of Vitamin E May Be Harmful, Study Says, New York
Times article
The Annals of
Internal Medicine will publish the findings from Dr. Miller's study
in their January 4, 2005 edition.
Copyright © 2005 Pamela Rice Hahn
All Rights Reserved |
