Should We Take a Multivitamin?
Channel: NutritionFacts.org
Date: 31/01/2014

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DESCRIPTION: What does the best available science say about the role multivitamins may play in heart disease, cancer, and longevity? Multiple studies demonstrate the use of multivitamins may be superfluous.

I've previously addressed multivitamins in my videos Are Multivitamins Good For You? (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/are-multivitamins-good-for-you/) and Multivitamin Supplements and Breast Cancer (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/multivitamin-supplements-and-breast-cancer/) (with a follow-up in my Q&A Is multivitamin use really associated to an increased risk of breast cancer?, http://nutritionfacts.org/questions/is-multivitamin-use-associated-to-a-risk-of-breast-cancer/). I also touched on potential risks in Dietary Theory of Alzheimer's (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/dietary-theory-of-alzheimers/).

With the exception of vitamins D and B12 (Vitamin Supplements Worth Taking, http://nutritionfacts.org/video/vitamin-supplements-worth-taking/), we should strive to get our nutrients from produce, not pills. 

As new studies and meta-analyses on multivitamins come out, my take-away message remains the same: getting our nutrients from fruits and vegetables—not pills—appears to serve us better. You can learn more from my video on past research on multivitamins here: Are Multivitamins Good For You? (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/are-multivitamins-good-for-you/).

Multivitamins seem to increase women's risk of breast cancer: Multivitamin Supplements and Breast Cancer (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/multivitamin-supplements-and-breast-cancer/). I discuss this research more while answering a reader's question in an associated blog post: Is multivitamin use really associated to an increased risk of breast cancer? (http://nutritionfacts.org/questions/is-multivitamin-use-associated-to-a-risk-of-breast-cancer/).

Other dietary supplements might not be much better. I created a three part series on it:

• Dietary Supplement Snake Oil (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/dietary-supplement-snake-oil)
• Heavy Metals in Protein Powder Supplements (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/heavy-metals-in-protein-powder-supplements/)
• Some Dietary Supplements May Be More Than a Waste of Money (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/some-dietary-supplements-may-be-more-than-a-waste-of-money/)

Have a question for Dr. Greger about this video? Leave it in the comment section at http://nutritionfacts.org/video/should-we-take-a-multivitamin/ and he'll try to answer it!

Image Credit: stevendepolo, Clean Wal-Mart, theseanster93, and Carsten Schertzer via Flickr.

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