Antioxidants & cancer

Nutrition Action Healthletter, Jan-Feb, 2005

A low-dose antioxidant supplement lowered the risk of cancer in men, but not women, in a study on more than 13,000 healthy French adults aged 35 to 60.

All participants took a placebo or a daily capsule containing vitamin C (120 mg), vitamin E (66 IU), beta-carotene (10,000 IU), selenium (100 mcg), and zinc (20 mg). After nearly eight years, researchers found a 31 percent lower risk of cancer and a 37 percent lower risk of dying (of any cause) in men. The supplement had no effect on the risk of heart disease or on any illness in women.

What to do: It makes sense for everyone to take a multivitamin-and-mineral to make sure they get the Daily Values for most nutrients. The researchers speculated that the antioxidants didn't help the women in this study because they were getting enough antioxidants in their food.

Arch. Intern. Med. 164: 2335, 2004.