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Science Weekly

Is there any point in taking multivitamins?

Science Weekly

The Guardian

Science

4.21K Ratings

🗓️ 18 July 2024

⏱️ 16 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Multivitamins are cheap, convenient, and provide a little bit of reassurance if our diet isn’t quite as healthy as we’d like. But a recent study of nearly 400,000 people spanning 20 years found they didn’t help users live longer, and in fact appeared to show a 4% increased mortality risk. Ian Sample hears from JoAnn Manson, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, to find out what the evidence tells us about the overall health benefits of multivitamins, and how consumers can navigate this large and sometimes confusing market. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Transcript

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0:00.0

This is the Guardian.

0:09.0

Hello everyone.

0:10.0

It's me, Chante, here from The Guardians Hot Culture Podcast.

0:16.2

I just wanted to let you know that on this week's episode I'm going to be interviewing

0:20.4

Rat Man, the creator of Super Cell, which is currently Netflix's number one

0:24.6

show in the world. So if you're a fan of this show and you want to hear how the

0:30.0

superhero genre has been shaken up, then go and listen to us wherever you get

0:34.8

your podcast and have a glorious day. So, so, so skin.

0:46.0

Get your morning mojo going with wooler-like Greek style.

0:50.0

Now with a new recipe, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin D, let's have it.

0:58.0

Mull-a-light, get the good going. The going. Multivitamins, they're cheap, convenient, and provide a little bit of

1:18.1

reassurance if our diet isn't quite as healthy as we'd like. In fact, nearly half of adults here in the UK are taking

1:26.5

them or supplements of some kind at least once a week, which is probably why a recent study into their health benefits or lack of, made headlines

1:36.3

around the world.

1:38.4

Researchers have studied the medical records of nearly 400,000 healthy Americans over 20 years.

1:44.0

They found that taking multivitamins every day

1:46.3

does not, repeat, does not help you live longer.

1:50.2

Otherwise, healthy people who took daily multivitamins actually were slightly more likely than non-users to die during that study period.

1:58.0

Not only did the study show that daily multivitamins didn't help users live longer, it appeared to show a 4% higher mortality

2:06.8

risk, not exactly the health effect most of us are after.

2:11.7

So is there any point in taking multivitamins? Could they actually cause harm?

2:17.0

And how should we navigate this booming and confusing market to best look after our health? I'm the Guardian Science Editor Ian Sample and this is

...

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