By now, we all should be used to the negative news on various vitamins. Think back just a short time and we can remember the flack about vitamin E. Granted it was an ill conceived statistical nightmare once you got to the guts of the 'research', but it made great evening news. Now we have a similar blurb about vitamin D.
The headline "Vitamin D doesn't prevent heart attack or cancer, study says". Sounds ominous. Let's get in and look around.
Published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, the research states that seniors who are taking vitamin D for bone health, do not decrease their chance of dying of cancer or vascular disease. Wow, doesn't look good for vitamin D, does it. Let's look a little deeper.
In the study group were all over 70 years of age and had bone fractures. They divided the participants into four groups. One group took calcium 1,000mg per day. Another group took vitamin D 800 i.u. per day. The third group took both calcium and vitamin D (that is the group I would have wanted to be in), and yet another group took a placebo pill.
The people in the study took the pills for two to five years and were followed for another three years. So far, so good.
The data showed that the people took vitamin D, 32 out of 100 died, with 33 out of 100 died. Not statistically different. And from this they extrapolated that D did not prevent heart attack or cancer? Wow. What a reach.
There is some very good supporting research that has indicated that vitamin D can and does have beneficial effects in both cardiac and cancer areas. I am of the opinion that if we are going to make broad statements like this about a nutrient, which can cause a lot of concern in the public, we need to have good data to back it up. The public in confused enough already due to 'disinformation' or at best, misleading information. At Doctor's Nutrition we always try to sift through the data and try to find some truth. That you can count on.
Dr. Jim
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