14) "AS YET UNPROVEN" SUPPLEMENTS
c) Vitamins, Antioxidants and Minerals
A lot of the "supplement" ideas sound good to even good researchers. "Antioxidants" are probably the best illustration of the quandary presented by research in the area. The cross linking and "protein poisoning" (glycation) that takes place during high blood sugar excursions is a form of "oxidation". An "antioxidant" in theory interferes with that oxidation so, in theory, an "antioxidant" is a good thing. The problem is that the very basis of life is oxidation, a person breaths in oxygen and that oxygen oxidizes materials in their body to carbon dioxide and water to provide the body with energy. Oxidation is taking place constantly throughout every cell in the human body. So any truly safe "anti-oxidant" just doesn't have any real effect.
The same is true of "free radical scavengers". "Free radicals" are chemical species which are involved in many of the "bad" chemical processes in the human body. Unfortunately free radicals are also involved in "good" chemical processes throughout the body and are essential to life itself. So any truly safe "free radical scavenger" actually has little net effect. Meaningful research has shown no positive effects from anti-oxidative free radical scavengers. We recommend low doses of vitamins E and C, weak anti-oxidative free radical scavengers, but the positive effects of these two vitamins actually seem to be separate from their free radical antioxidant properties, the effects are more along the lines ot that of an enzyme.
As pointed out elsewhere, vitamin D deficiency is becoming more and more common as people avoid sunlight in order to avoid skin cancer. Unfortunately only oily fish contain large amounts of vitamin D and an individual would need to eat half a pound of salmon per day in order to meet the 1000 IU recommended levels. So a 1000 IU vitamin D tablet daily is probably a good idea. 500 gms of vitamin C and 300 gms of vitamin E every other day would also be reasonable. Anything beyond these low levels is probably not a good idea.
The largest study ever of multivitamin use in older women found the pills did nothing to prevent common cancers or heart disease. The eight-year study in 161,808 postmenopausal women echoes recent disappointing vitamin studies in men. After about eight years, roughly equal numbers of vitamin users and nonusers developed common cancers, heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems. Overall, there were 9,619 cases of cancer, including cancers of the breast, lung, ovary, colon and stomach; and 8,751 cardiovascular ailments including heart attacks and strokes. In addition, 9,865 women died, also at similar rates in multivitamin users and nonusers. Several other well done studies have found no benefits to multivitamin use.
Some doctors do recommend a one-a-day vitamin with folic acid but without iron in it (iron increases the chance of a heart attack) as cheap insurance only. I.e. it can't hurt and if you're dieting and not eating a balanced diet as a result it might help. Note that vitamins are a common cause of nausea and stomach aches. If one must take vitamins, try to find a very low dosage pill and take it with meals. One misconception that even many doctors share is that vitamins are destroyed by cooking. Most vitamins are stabile for at least several hours at the temperature of boilng water, so they are not destroyed by most cooking processes. Vitamin K is one exception but we obtain vitamin K largely from bacteria in our gut, not from our food, so vitamin K is rarely deficient.
Megadoses of vitamins need to be avoided by everyone. Even vitamins E, D and C should not be taken in excess. Megadoses of vitamin C are jokingly known around medical circles as the "urologist's friend" because high megadoses of vitamin C generate revenue for urologists by contributing significantly to kidney stones. It is also specifically not recommended that a person with diabetes take large doses of vitamin B3. High doses of Niacin (recommended by some for cholesterol control) can severely damage the liver, so avoid high doses of Niacin unless it is under a doctor's supervision. A large amount of even a good thing can be damaging. There is apparently no supporting research for taking large amounts of Vitamin B complex (8 vitamins total), Vitamins D (supposedly reduces insulin insensitivity), K1, or K2. The chemicals N-Acetyl-Cysteine, Bromelain, GLA, hydroxycitric acid, Q-10, CoQ10, alpha lipoic acid (ALA), L carnosine, L-tryptophan (can cause death!), L-Tyrosine, and S-Adenosylmethionine (SAMe) are vitamin like chemicals often recommended for diabetes. There is apparently no good statistically significant research supporting their use as oral supplements.
As noted in another chapter, the antioxidant Vitamin E might possibly have benefit in moderate doses. But the latest accumulation of 68 randomized double blind studies involving 232,606 people have found no significant effect on mortality linked to taking antioxidants including Vitamin E. As a matter of fact, if only the best of the research was looked at, there was actually a higher risk of death for people taking vitamins: 4 percent higher risk of death for those taking vitamin E, 7 percent for beta carotene and 16 percent for vitamin A. But it has to be emphasized that these studies included those studies where the individuals took so called "megadoses" of antioxidant. Megadoses of anything are simply not healthy.
The sulfur containing antioxidants found in cabbage and broccoli might be good for you but no objective double blind research has been able to link them to a decrease in heart disease or cancer in humans or to any benefit to a person with diabetes. The same is true of the minerals selenium, chromium (supposedly regulates insulin and metabolism), and vanadium (vanydyl sufate, which supposedly reduces excess blood glucose levels). Magnesium is the only mineral proven to have a beneficial effect on diabetes. A deficiency of folic acid has been shown to contribute to heart disease but any decent diet will provide all the folic acid required (green vegetables are full of folic acid). An excess of folic acid in the form of mega supplements can cause a vitamin B12 deficiency, which can kill. Again, we're not recommending against taking antioxidant supplements; we just can't find any meaningful double blind research which supports their use. We definitely do recommend against taking megadoses of any antioxidant and/or any vitamin.
Other "herbal antioxidants" we could find no meaningful research support for include rosemary, thyme, nutmeg, sage, shitake mushrooms and pine bark extract. We did find that there were an awful lot of claims for an awful lot of compounds. The philosophy seems to be to do a poorly done research study which proves your point. Appear on some talk shows. Advertise on some websites (if I get one more pop-up for acai supplements I'm going to scream). Get a "off brand" manufacturer to make it for you, and then watch the money roll in.
Current Chapter: 14) "AS YET UNPROVEN" SUPPLEMENTS
a) Introduction
b) The Good and the Bad
c) Vitamins and Antioxidants
d) Calcium and Dairy Intake
e) Potassium
f) Phytonutrients, Catechins and Flavonoids
g) Cinnamon
h) Herbal Supplements
i) Other "Panaceas"
j) Alcohol and Coffee
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