Answers from Dr. Kaiser

Question:

A recent study published by the US National Cancer Institute found that "men taking high levels of multivitamins along with other supplements have increased risk of advanced and fatal prostate cancers." The findings, based on data on nearly 300,000 men, indicated the risk of advanced prostate cancer is 32% higher in men who take multivitamins more than once a day than in those who do not take them at all. Should those of us on your protocol (high multivitamin and supplement count) be worried by these findings? If not, why not? Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

Dr. Kaiser replies:

The NIH Diet and Health Study followed the health habits of over 295,000 men with the goal of identifying risk factors for prostate cancer and other illnesses. It's findings suggested an association between the intake of high doses of selenium, zinc, and beta-carotene and advanced (but not early) prostate cancer and these results were published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute on May 16, 2007.

Many people who take multivitamins with the above nutrients are now appropriately questioning whether they should still consume these supplements.

There are a few important points to highlight before you decide to make a change in what you are taking:

1. This study did not look at the effect of one specific multivitamin or antioxidant formula on the incidence of prostate cancer. Instead, the study looked at the effect of a multitude of different products of varying dosages and qualities. Some individuals may have been taking excessive dosages of micronutrients that are already known to cause harm when taken above certain levels. For instance, zinc consumption greater than 75 mg per day is known to be immunosuppressive and selenium consumption greater than 400 mcg per day can be toxic. Interestingly, the individual consumption of these two micronutrients, in addition to a daily multivitamin, was associated with an increased incidence in advanced prostate cancer.

2. The consumption of micronutrient supplements in improper amounts may, in fact, create an imbalanced state in the body that imparts a negative effect on the cells of various organs and/or the immune system. This was probably the reason that, several years ago, a study giving high doses of beta-carotene - by itself - to smokers showed an increased incidence of lung cancer. In my opinion, a micronutrient supplement needs to be precisely balanced and of pharmaceutical-grade quality to provide benefit.

3. The increased rate of advanced prostate cancer in the group taking multivitamin supplements was actually very small.

• There was no association seen between taking micronutrient supplements and the risk of localized (early) prostate cancer.

• There was only a 5% increase in the total incidence of prostate cancer in men taking multivitamins compared to those not taking any vitamin supplements.

• There was no association between fatal prostate cancers and men taking multivitamins who were not also taking a separate zinc supplement.

• There were 2121 cases of advance prostate cancer in the vitamin group and 1672 cases of advance prostate cancer in the non-vitamin group (a difference of only 449 cases out of 295,000 participants during 5 years of follow-up).

• There were 278 fatalities in the vitamin group compared to 168 fatalities in the non-vitamin group (a difference of only 110 deaths out of 295,000 participants during 5 years of follow-up).

It is unfortunate that these specifics and the small overall numbers were not highlighted when the study results were recently publicized.

It is my belief that micronutrients should be supplemented by taking a high-quality, balanced micronutrient supplement (such as K-PAX Immune Support Formula and some others) that has been carefully formulated and manufactured to pharmaceutical-quality standards. I still believe this is a good idea for people interested in maintaining good health and the results of this study do not sway my confidence in this formula's ability to keep myself and my patients at the highest level of health.

Thank you for raising such an important question.

Dr. Kaiser

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