. . . yes, if it's the wrong kind! The second study was done under the auspices of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on the potential benefits of vitamin E and selenium for preventing prostate cancer. It had to be terminated when researchers found 400 IU of vitamin E daily was actually increasing the risk of prostate cancer. But what form of vitamin E were these scientists using? The wrong kind! Synthetic alpha tocopherol acetate! Here is a quote from my Roadmap to Choosing Supplements on vitamin E (emphases added): There are different forms of vitamin E, and they are not equal in chemical structure or function. Most vitamin E supplements contain alpha tocopherol, yet there is growing evidence indicating that it may be harmful to consume alpha tocopherol without at the same time obtaining gamma tocopherol. They must be taken together for best results. Another problem is synthetic vitamin E, which is not well absorbed and has been found to be only half as effective as natural E. F…

. . . Older Iowan women do just as well or better without taking a multi The first study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, followed almost 39,000 women for 19 years. The women were age 55-69 when the study began. By the study's end, about 40% of them had died: 41% of multivitamin users died compared to 40% of non-users. Similar close comparisons were found for women taking or not taking individual nutrients; sometimes the supplement-takers came out a little ahead, and sometimes the non-supplement-takers fared a bit better. Not a big difference, and a far cry from proof that supplements increase the risk of death (as implied by some media headlines reporting this study). At the same time, these results are not encouraging if you're spending your hard-earned money on supplements hoping to improve your chances of a long, healthy life. There've been many criticisms of this study, which has been called a good example of "junk science," but here's the main problem: all the dat…

Calcium, once lauded as a superstar for preventing and curing osteoporosis, now seems to be a nutrient-non-grata among both conventional and alternative “experts.” Vitamin C researcher, Thomas E. Levy, has even entitled a book Death by Calcium! How did an important nutrient, in which most Americans especially the elderly are deficient, come to such a sorry pass? The calcium saga goes back several years to a time when it was anointed a “magic bullet” to solve the problem of osteoporosis. Need more bone? Just take lots of calcium! When that didn’t work as well as hoped, the experts said well you should probably take your calcium with vitamin D. This worked a little better, but was still less than ideal. In fact, calcium needs a whole “team” of nutrients for its absorption and proper utilization. Vitamins D and K (especially K2) and the mineral magnesium are star players on the team, but check the label on Beyond Health’s Bone Mineral Formul…