Multivitamins – A Plausible Breast Cancer Risk Factor

We are perennially being advised about how the everyday intake of multivitamins could aid in improving general health and wellbeing and could even shield from ailments like cancer. However, a novel study has indicated that this apparently healthful habit might in fact be a breast cancer risk factor.

The study took into account information from 35,000 females from Sweden in the age group 49-83 years old, that did not have cancer at the commencement of a ten year time period. After ten years, the researchers uncovered that older females that were taking multivitamins were nineteen percent more prone to developing breast cancer in comparison to females that did not have multivitamins. This discovery was accurate irrespective of whether the females engaged in smoking, or were taking hormones intended for allaying menopause symptoms over that decade.

Investigators of the latest study helmed by Susanna C.Larsson, PhD, from the Karolinska Inst., Stockholm, Sweden came to a conclusion that the likely health advantages or detrimental outcomes linked with multivitamin usage are of vast health significance and the noted link is a cause of alarm and needs additional studies for corroborating the finding.

Could Multivitamins be a potential breast cancer risk factor?

A predominant query would engulf all that ‘how could something which is deemed to be great for health be a breast cancer risk factor?’

The study fails in establishing cause-effect, however it does suggest a link between usage of multivitamins and greater chances of developing breast cancer.

Investigators state that there could be a number of biologically credible explanations behind why multivitamins could raise breast cancer risk. Folic acid is a constituent present in multivitamins which could augment breast density that could be stimulating cancer growth.

A number of researches have additionally found associations between intake of zinc, iron to augmented risk of cancer developing, although there have been several researches indicating that there are no links in-between these components and cancer risk.

Asst. Prof. of medicine from Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, Dr. Katherine Lee stated that there could be a number of constituents present in multivitamins which may potentially amplify breast cancer risk, however the issue is dearth of knowledge on the exact constituent being responsible for it.

In the latest study, females did not cite the type of multivitamin brand they were taking and solely cited if or not they were taking them. There is a likelihood that recalls prejudice could have had an effect on their capability of precisely remembering if or how frequently they were taking multivitamins.

The novel study did indicate that vitamins B6, C and E were not accountable for the augmented risk of breast cancer. The novel research did show that calcium additionally seemed to offer safeguard from breast cancer.

Dr. Lee pointed out that in case a person is having a regular healthy dietetic intake, then one would not require taking multivitamins. She suggested that it is imperative for all people to discuss with their physician regarding their diet and type of foods or food sets they evade and perhaps think about including supplements which are able to take care of any such deficits by the intake of multivitamin.

Women thus must not take hasty decisions about tossing out their multivitamins before further studies are able to completely substantiate the present finding.