- Daily multivitamins may not help you live longer, a new study finds.
- Researchers found no evidence that daily multivitamin consumption lowered the risk of death from conditions such as heart disease or cancer.
- Experts explain the findings.
People take vitamins for all kinds of reasons, from immunity to brain health, but many add them to their routine with the hope of boosting longevity. However, new research shows that your daily multivitamin may not help you live longer after all.
A study published in JAMA Network Open, from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), analysed data from nearly 400,000 adults spanning 20 years. Participants had a median age of 61.5 and were generally healthy, with no history of chronic diseases. Over the 20-year period that the participants were followed, researchers reported nearly 165,000 deaths.
Researchers found no evidence that taking a daily multivitamin lowered the risk of death from conditions such as heart disease or cancer. In fact, rather than living longer, otherwise healthy people who took daily multivitamins were slightly more likely (4%) than non-vitamin-takers to die in the study period, according to the research.
The study, however, did not analyse data from people with pre-existing vitamin deficiencies (so people who may need to take certain vitamins and supplements). Therefore, more research is needed for populations with nutritional deficiencies to determine if multivitamin use shows similar results.
So, what is the purpose of taking a multivitamin, then? Well, multivitamins provide some, all, or more than the recommended amounts of vitamins and sometimes minerals, says dietitian Melissa Prest. “They are used to supplement nutrients you may miss from your diet. However, for most people who eat a balanced diet, multivitamins may not add much to their already balanced plate,” she points out.
Most longevity studies find that diet and lifestyle are more important than vitamin supplements for longevity, says Prest. “As a registered dietitian nutritionist, I recommend multivitamins, after completing a diet assessment, for individuals with a sustained poor appetite or other health conditions that impede their ability to eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables,” she advises.
So can multivitamins help you live longer or not? This has been a tough question to answer over the years, especially as high-quality studies controlled for bias and external factors have been lacking, says GP Dr Stephen Vogel.
“More recent reviews, however, including this article in JAMA, have been able to account for those biases fairly well. So, generally, for those who are otherwise healthy with no known risks for deficiency, there isn’t enough evidence available to indicate that supplementing with multivitamins will improve life longevity,” he explains.
But this may not mean that you need to stop taking your one-a-day. Ultimately, whether or not you should include a daily multivitamin to your routine depends on your individual needs. Like any supplement, some people could benefit from a multivitamin, and others not, says Prest. “At a minimum, I recommend that people discuss whether or not to take a vitamin supplement with their healthcare provider. People can also meet with a dietitian who can take a deeper look into your usual eating patterns and health history, and guide you on what is or is not appropriate for you,” she advises.
Multivitamins may still play a key role in helping those with active deficiencies or risk factors from developing one, says Dr Vogel. “Those who are struggling with alcohol addiction, have poor-quality diets with low fruit and vegetable intake, maintain a vegan diet, or have a history of bariatric surgery could all benefit from supplementation.”
On the other hand, if anyone is struggling with the cost or burden of daily multivitamin use without a specific indication for taking one, or simply recognises that their healthy lifestyle is doing the brunt of the work towards living a long life, multivitamin supplementation should be considered optional, Dr Vogel explains. “Ultimately, there is very little risk with supplementing, so we should all look at this information as a tool to help us make informed decisions,” he says.
The bottom line
This study may give pause to those who are taking supplements while leading a healthy life including a balanced diet with regular exercise, says Dr Vogel. “For those folks, the cost of regularly supplementing and exposure to unregulated compounds within the supplements could all outweigh the benefits,” he notes.
The study highlights that food and diet are most important for health and longevity and that not everyone needs to take a multivitamin, says Prest. Aside from multivitamins, “focus on healthy lifestyle habits like getting enough sleep, eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, and moving your body daily to help you live a longer, healthier life,” Prest advises.
And remember, not all multivitamins are equal, Prest notes. “They will have varying amounts of vitamins and which vitamins they contain.” So, Prest recommends taking your time to read the supplement label to ensure you are getting the right mix of vitamins for your health needs, and not overdoing it on any one in particular.
Dietary supplements are products intended to supplement the diet. They are not medicines and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent or cure diseases. Be cautious about taking dietary supplements if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
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