With people in Kashmir valley allegedly hooked on to multivitamins, Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) on June 10 said they have no health benefits and some of them are even harmful.

“Multivitamins do not boost your health and cannot replace a healthy diet,” DAK President Dr Nisar ul Hassan said. “People dose up on multivitamins as if they are elixir of life. They think these supplements are an instant fix for feeling run down or lack of energy. They believe that multivitamins prevent disease and quell the ravages of ageing,” he said.

Dr Hassan said contrary to popular belief, research has failed to find any substantial evidence that vitamins do any significant good.
“According to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, most of the multivitamins and minerals have no health benefits in the prevention of cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke or early death,” he said.

Dr Hassan said multivitamins do nothing to slow cognitive decline associated with ageing and there is no data to support that they prevent cancer. In fact, several supplements have been linked with an increased risk of certain cancers. “In a study, beta-carotene and vitamin A supplements increased the risk of lung cancer among smokers by 28 percent,” he said adding that “another study found that men who consumed vitamin E had 17 percent increased risk of prostate cancer.”

Dr Hassan said multivitamins are not only unnecessary, but potentially dangerous and their use is not justified and they should be avoided. “There is absolutely no substitute for a healthy diet which is the ideal source of the vitamins we need. Fruits and vegetables will give your body the vitamins it needs, at the right level and in the right balance,” he said.