Taking too many vitamins can heighten your risk of developing cancer

The widespread use of vitamin supplements is common nowadays as people consider them part of their daily health routine. The motives may be to compensate for possible nutritional deficiencies, to improve general health or to treat specific ailments.

Swedish study alarms

There is controversy regarding the benefits of vitamin supplements, as a balanced diet normally provides sufficient nutrients and excessive intake can lead to undesirable side effects. Studies have also shown an increased risk of disease for long-term use of certain vitamins or supplements, as reported by Focus.

The magazine quotes the head of a Swedish study. The main focus is on antioxidants such as vitamin C. According to Focus, Martin Bergö from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden comes to the following surprising conclusion:

We have discovered that antioxidants activate a mechanism that causes cancer tumors to form new blood vessels.

Read more: Popular supplements increase your risk of cancer, according to study

British investigation confirms

A British charity called Killing Cancer Kindly (KCK) warns that tablets taken daily could increase the risk of cancer by as much as 30 percent. Multivitamin supplements in particular are the focus of the organization and should come with a health warning.

According to KCK, the products contain unnecessarily high doses of nutrients that act as 'superfoods' for cancer cells and contribute to their proliferation. Dr. Mohammad Muneeb Khan, an oncologist, explains that synthetic pills contain micronutrients in quantities that far exceed the human body's needs, according to the Birmingham Mail.

This allows cancer cells to be properly nourished and multiply rapidly. According to the Birmingham Mail, Dr. Khan therefore suggests that the classification of multivitamins as medicines should be accompanied by health warnings and a prescription requirement. On gesundheitsinformation.de of the Foundation for Quality and Efficiency in Healthcare you can even read:

In high-quality studies, all dietary supplements containing vitamins A, E and beta-carotene led to increased mortality.

Read more:Taking dietary supplements with this common drug could be dangerous to your health

This article has been translated from Gentside DE.

Sources used:
Birmingham Mail: Tablets taken by millions in UK every day could 'increase cancer risk by 30 per cent'

Focus: Wer Vitamine-Pillen einnimmt, kann sein Krebsrisiko erhöhen

gesundheitsinformation.de: Nahrungsergänzungsmittel: Können sie auch schaden?