Postmenopausal Women Taking Supplements & Risk of Dying

motheroffoursons

This is why we have to do critical thinking about statistics and studies. 

My homepage today has an article implying that postmenopausal women who take vitamins and supplements increase their risk of dying.

I would want to know a whole lot more about the study.  What I really think is that women do not start taking supplements seriously until they are diagnosed with some major health issues.  So the information is skewed.  What the article might be saying is:

People who get sick with diseases have an increased risk of dying.

For the study, Mursu's team collected data on nearly 39,000 women who took part in the Iowa Women's Health Study. Specifically, the researchers looked for a connection between taking dietary supplements and the risk of death. The women in the study had an average age of 62 and reported their supplement use in 1986, 1997 and 2004.

Over 19 years of follow-up, 15,594 of the women died. Supplement use increased from 1986, when 63 percent of the women reported taking at least one supplement, to 85 percent in 2004, the researchers found.

thats-life-

http://www.caring4cancer.com/go/cancer/news?NewsItemId=20111007elin001.xml

this study was posted in the trials and research forum as well. It is an interesting issue. This study claims that vitC and E are ok but other supps are a risk. i see your point but i am concerned about supps, and tend to avoid them...except vitD and C

Belinda44

I don't consider myself an "older woman" yet and I keep going back and forth about the value of taking a multi vitamin.  I think for now, I'll just stick with my calcium/vitamin D supplement and fish oil supplement.

 http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/11/health/study-supplements-risk-older-women/index.html

lbrewer

thats life,

I had the same reaction you did.  You only have to look at my counter to see it...before BC I took nothing, not even a vitamin. Now there is a whole basket full of stuff I take daily.

peggy_j

FWIW, when I saw a doc a couple weeks ago (days after the report came out) he said the study isn't solid science; it was self-reported data vs. a randomized study and he said that type of study generally doesn't produce good results. His comparison: he said self-reported studies might lead people to think that carrying a pack of matches in your pocket causes lung cancer (when it fact, matches mean your'e more likely to smoke, and it's the tobacco that causes the problems.) So I agree w/ the original poster. Even if there's a correlation, that's definitely different than cause and effect.

That said, the couple nutritionists I spoke to said that it's better to get your nutrients from food and have a well-balanced diet, lots of fruits and veggies, etc. i.e. it's not realistic to eat bad and expect the supplements to fill in all the gaps. 

Kaara

I wonder who funded that study!  IMO it's common sense.  Everything in moderation.  I take the supplements that are known to protect my body and stay away from those that offer "miracle" cures.

When I don't take my supplements and multi vitamin formula, I don't feel as well, my fingernails get very brittle, and I lose my hair.  For me it's a no brainer.  My PCP just smiles and says I'm making expensive urine.