Keen on food supplements, be aware that abusing it is not without risk to health. “Taking vitamins and minerals does more harm than good,” cancer expert Professor Tim Byersn told the annual meeting of the American Cancer Research Association (AACR).
In his study published in the Journal of the national cancer Institute a few years ago (March 2012), the researcher and his team showed that the excess consumption of food supplements was linked to an increased risk of cancer.
The study, which began 20 years ago, was based on the fact that a diet rich in vitamins, fibers and trace elements thanks to fruits and vegetables protected against cancer. Tim Byers and his team therefore wanted to know if this beneficial effect was found through the intake of food supplements. If the tests on animals have been promising, they have not been found in humans, quite the contrary.
For ten years, the team followed men and women, some of whom took daily food supplements and others took placebos.
“We found that dietary supplements were not really beneficial for your health. In fact, some people have even developed a higher risk of cancer while taking vitamins, ”reveals Professor Byers. In particular, the study showed that people who took beta-carotene (an antioxidant used to prepare the skin for tanning and prolong it) as a supplement saw their risk of lung cancer increase by 18 to 28%. Similarly, according to other work cited by Prof. Byers, excess vitamin E increases the risk of prostate cancer by 17%. As for selenium, it is accused of increasing the risk of developing skin cancer to 25%.
However, correct consumption does not present any major health risk and can even be beneficial, recalled Professor Byers. The latter recommends more to the consumer to opt for a healthy and balanced diet, because this one contains in principle enough elements essential for our health.
According to a survey carried out by the National Health Security Agency (ANSES), one in five adults and one in ten children have consumed food supplements at least once a year. in France.
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