Vitamins
SUPPLEMENT COMBINATION OF IRON AND VITAMIN C IS SAFE AND
EFFECTIVE
There have been concerns that through increasing the bioavailability
of iron, a known oxidant, supplemental vitamin C may actually
increase free radical generation in the body. Therefore
scientists examined the effect of co-supplementing healthy
adults with iron and vitamin C on antioxidant status, platelet
function and low-density lipoprotein oxidation. Results
revealed that supplementation with a combined formulation
had a highly beneficial effect on the parameters investigated
and there was no evidence of any pro-oxidant effect.
It was concluded that iron supplements containing vitamin
C as a synergistic factor are more beneficial to health
than a supplement containing only iron, and are perfectly
safe for long-term daily use.
EUR. J. CLIN. NUTR. 1999, 53 (5) 367-74
VITAMIN E AND VITAMIN C SUPPLEMENTATION AND RISK OF ALZHEIMER
DISEASE
A study was carried out to evaluate the association between
the supplementation of vitamins C and E and the incidence
of Alzheimer’s disease in 633 healthy subjects 65
years of age and over. After an average follow-up period
of 4.3 years, 91 subjects had been diagnosed with probable
Alzheimer’s disease. None of the 27 users of vitamin
E or the 23 users of vitamin C supplements had Alzheimer
disease. These data suggest that supplementation with high-dose
vitamins E and C may reduce the risk of Alzheimer disease.
Morris M.C. et al,
ALZHEIMER DISEASE AND ASSOC. DISORDERS 1998, 12, 121-126
VITAMIN E HELPS PREVENT INTELLECTUAL DECLINE
Researchers in Austria studied over 1,700 adults aged between
50 and 75 to test their intellectual capacity. They found
that those with higher levels of vitamin E were less likely
to have low scores in the test. A diet rich in vitamin E
may help prevent free radical damage and slow the progression
of age-related mental decline.
Schmidt, R. et al,
J. AM. GERIATR. SOC. 1998, 46, 1407-10
CONTRACEPTIVE PILL INCREASES RISK OF MENTAL ILLNESS
Studies have shown that the contraceptive pill can lower
the levels and metabolism of certain vitamins and minerals
in the body, including zinc, copper, folic acid, vitamins
B6 and B12. These nutrients are essential to control emotions
and moods, and deficiencies could account for the depression
and increased risk of suicide amongst women taking the pill.
J. NUTRIT. & ENVIRON. MED. 1998, 121-7
VITAMIN E MAY REDUCE PROSTATE CANCER INCIDENCE
The results of a large primary-prevention trial in Finnish
men have shown that vitamin E supplements could reduce prostate-cancer
incidence and mortality by one-third in men who smoke. More
than 29,000 male smokers aged 50-69 years were randomly
assigned to receive 50 mg ?-tocopherol, 20 mg ?-carotene,
both, or placebo daily for up to 8 years. At the end of
the study, 246 new cases of prostate cancer and 62 deaths
from the disease had occurred. However, the incidence was
32% lower, and mortality 41% lower in men taking a-tocopherol,
with or without ?-carotene, than in those not taking the
vitamin. ?-carotene non-significantly reduced the risk of
prostate cancer in non-drinkers, but increased the risk
in drinkers, the risk rising with increased alcohol consumption.
?-tocopherol is thought to block tumour progression from
subclinical to clinical phase. The researchers warn, however,
that studies with vitamin supplements are not a good basis
for dietary advice. The bioavailability of supplements may
be quite different from that of natural sources. And such
studies cannot replicate potential interactions with other
beneficial compounds in a natural diet, as occurs between
vitamins C and E in fruit and vegetables.
Bonn,D.
LANCET 1998, 351 (9107) 961
THE HEALING POWER OF MINERALS, SPECIAL NUTRIENTS, AND
TRACE ELEMENTS
AUTHOR: Paul Bergner
PUBLISHER: Prima
ISBN: 0-7615-1021-4
Prima Publishing have brought out yet another excellent
book by Paul Bergner. It is not just another repetitive
manual on the value of minerals and their deficiency symptoms,
but tells a fascinating, and shocking, story of how food
has become depleted in minerals and trace elements over
the past half century. The subject has as usual been very
thoroughly researched and the book is full of interesting
charts and statistics, starting from the concentrations
of minerals in rock and in sea water, and how they are further
concentrated in varying degrees as they rise up the food
chain to the human cell. Arguing for traditional versus
modern and processed foods, it is graphically demonstrated
that nutrient losses in some foods are up to 98.5%.
Chapter three is about the results of soil depletion on
food. An apple a day may have kept the doctor away in the
past, but no longer: in 1914 an apple contained almost half
the minimum daily requirement of iron, but today you would
have to eat 26 apples to get the same amount. In 80 years
reductions in the vitamin and mineral content of an apple
are: calcium 48%, phosphorus 84%, iron 96%, and magnesium
82%. Sources for the comparative data are Lindlaar 1914
and USDA 1963 and 1997. Figures for the changes in other
fruits and vegetables even between 1963 and 1992 make frightening
reading.
Symptoms and illnesses possibly caused by mineral deficiencies
are listed, and associated with the downward trend in mineral
content. Each mineral and trace element is discussed separately
and comprehensively, including interactions, factors affecting
absorption, toxicity and contraindications.
Paul Bergner advises on a healthy diet with optimum levels
of nutrients, based partly on his personal and clinical
experience, and on the study of traditional diets of indigenous
people around the world. Sugar, it is stressed many times,
is the worst culprit, and there are large quantities of
hidden sugar in so many foods. Surprisingly, low fat and
vegetarian diets come in for criticism: “In our clinic
in Boulder we see a steady stream of sick vegetarians, perhaps
40% of our clients..... we have dubbed them ‘fast-food
vegetarians’ because..... they do not refrain from
sugar”. Bergner, who was a strict and healthy vegetarian
for many years, now advocates a moderate consumption of
fish, red meats and organ meats, as did our ancesters who
ate wild game. He does stress that meat should not be eaten
in excess, should be from organically reared animals, and
taken in the context of an otherwise mineral- and vitamin-rich
organic wholefood diet. “Vegetarians who eat tofu
alone cannot expect to get the health benefits of the Japanese,
who eat it as a secondary food and not as a primary protein
source.” Bergner looks at diets in different countries
and cultures and considers that vegetarian, vegan, and macrobiotic
diets can be excellent short-term therapeutic diets, but
not sustaining in the long-term if applied totally.
The dangers of milk, wheat, and a low-fat diet are discussed,
together with the advantages of butter as opposed to processed
margarines, and the importance of balancing the omega-6
and omega-3 fatty acids.
One would think that, having shown such huge reductions
in the mineral content of even fresh foods, Bergner would
be in favour of mineral supplementation. However, he regards
supplements as “the ultimate fast food, and like other
fast food, will not nourish by themselves”. He draws
attention to the dangers of unbalanced supplementation,
and the fact that people with poor digestions will absorb
supplements even more poorly than food. Sea salt, kelp,
molasses and wild-harvested herbs are recommended instead.
The author has had valuable experience as a baker in the
health foods business, which, together with his background
in research, has helped form his very organic view of diet.
The book contains 13 pages of references.
One of the most interesting tables in the book is the mineral
content of 15 selected herbs: Alfalfa, Burdock, Catnip,
Chickweed, Comfrey, Horsetail, Kelp, Licorice, Marshmallow,
Nettle, Oatstraw, Peppermint, Red Clover, Red Raspberry,
and Skullcap. Figures are from Pedersen, 1994. I was surprised
to see that Chickweed is richer in iron than Nettle - 8.4mg
per ounce as against 1.4mg., and Catnip is higher in potassium
than Kelp.
Although vegetarians and vegans would find points to argue
with, it is a very thought-provoking book, and the overall
picture of the decline in the quality of food in western
civilisation over the last half century is a very worrying
indictment of what mankind is doing to the planet - and
the human race.
Brenda Cooke
VITAMINS ASSOCIATED WITH LOWER COLON-CANCER RISK
A recent study has shown that supplements of of multivitamins
and vitamin E are associated with a lower risk of colon
cancer. American researchers assessed the frequency, duration,
and daily dose of individual vitamin supplements and multivitamins,
for a ten year interval ending two years before diagnosis
of cancer. After controlling for other predictors of colon-cancer
risk such as intake of dietary vitamins, alcohol, and fibre,
the risk of colon cancer was lower in men and women who
took supplements of vitamins A, C, E, folic acid, calcium,
and multivitamins. But the association was strongest for
vitamin E and multivitamins: people who used multivitamins
daily for the entire 10-year interval had half the risk
of those who had not taken multivitamins. Those who averaged
200 IU or more of vitamin E per day for the 10 years had
a 57% risk reduction compared to non-users.
Macready, N
THE LANCET 1997, 350 (9089) 1452
