Using a multivitamin and mineral supplement does not reduce the risk of a heart attack, stroke, or death from heart disease. This is revealed by an analysis of 18 different studies.
A man walks into a service station
“Just pour in half a liter of everything. Engine oil, coolant, windshield washer fluid, and brake fluid. If I forgot any fluids, just pour in half a liter of those too. Tank full? Doesn’t matter, just pour in another half a liter.” Fortunately, your body is smarter in dealing with deficiencies and excesses than a car. Yet the above resembles taking a multivitamin and mineral supplement a bit. Yes, your body needs them just like a car needs more than gasoline. But even in the case of the body, you may wonder if it’s wise to supplement something without knowing if there’s a deficiency (and how big that deficiency is).Multi’s rule the world
You may wonder why multivitamins and minerals are so popular worldwide. Vitamins are still the best-selling supplement globally, and this is most likely driven by the sale of multivitamin-mineral blends. Just about the only supplement that could be considered mainstream. Smart marketing and ease of use have likely played a big role in this. Who wants to delve into the role of different vitamins and minerals? Let alone take it two steps further; having your own needs for all the different vitamins and minerals assessed and planning their fulfillment. Much easier to just swallow two pills daily and let your body figure out the rest. Such a product sells itself. You can tell a nice story about the positive effects in the body of every vitamin and every mineral. Some rightfully so, others unfairly, almost all depending on personal intake and dosage. It’s actually impossible to mention general effects of the various vitamins and minerals without providing context. If you tell such general stories about the different vitamins and minerals together, the chance of going wrong is even greater.Multivitamins and minerals and heart disease
One such story is about the positive effect that multivitamin and mineral supplements are said to have on cardiovascular health. The health of your heart and blood vessels. Researchers at the University of Alabama did not see this story confirmed in several studies conducted on this topic. However, it’s a controversial subject on which the opinions of different scientists differ. The researchers from Alabama wanted to provide clarity with their meta-analysis of 18 different studies [1].We meticulously evaluated the body of scientific evidence. We found no clinical benefit of multivitamin and mineral use to prevent heart attacks, strokes, or cardiovascular death Joonseok Kim, University of AlabamaA total of more than 2 million people participated in the 18 studies, including randomized controlled trials and prospective cohort studies. On average, these people were followed for 12 years. Quite a dataset. They found no association between the intake of multivitamin and mineral supplements and a lower risk of heart disease.
It has been exceptionally difficult to convince people, including nutritional researchers, to acknowledge that multivitamin and mineral supplements don’t prevent cardiovascular diseases. I hope our study findings help decrease the hype around multivitamin and mineral supplements and encourage people to use proven methods to reduce their risk of cardiovascular diseases — such as eating more fruits and vegetables, exercising and avoiding tobacco.So, the age-old wisdom: Don’t expect supplements to replace what should come from a healthy lifestyle. Also, when it comes to the risk of heart disease, customization is important. Knowing your personal predisposition to heart disease and adjusting your lifestyle accordingly.
References
- Joonseok Kim, Jaehyoung Choi, Soo Young Kwon, John W. McEvoy, Michael J. Blaha, Roger S. Blumenthal, Eliseo Guallar, Di Zhao, Erin D. Michos. Association of Multivitamin and Mineral Supplementation and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease. Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 2018; 11 (7): e004224
- https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.117.004224
