Vitamins are here to stay

Dear Reader, The last century has been a real windfall for vitamins. We know more about their benefits now than ever before. And what's even more exciting, we're really beginning to reap the rewards of this science. Well, you are, at least. A lot of people--including doctors--still hide their heads in the sand when it comes to this information. But guess what? We were right and they were wrong. (Yeah, that's a little bit of schoolyard behavior there...but too bad.) The truth is, there's more research supporting vitamin therapy than you can shake a stethoscope at. It's hard to even know where to start. But I think vitamin D is probably a good place to begin. This nutrient is now linked to a giant roster of benefits. Studies show that it can modulate the immune system. Thanks to this ability, vitamin D may be able to aid recovery from tuberculosis and minimize the impact of autoimmune disorders like lupus. Some of the most recent research has backed vitamin D therapy as a means of boosting the recovery of critically ill children and improving infant brain and motor skill development. Meanwhile, vitamin D can increase your life expectancy by taking on heart disease. And it may even protect against multiple sclerosis. Deficiency, on the other hand, can wreak havoc on your health. Weakened immunity, disability, higher diabetes risk, and even more painful periods are all associated with low levels of D. And of course, there's vitamin D's old reliable role in maintaining your body's calcium levels and strengthening your bones. Let's see...what else? How about the long list of essential vitamins that we now know can reduce cancer risk and slow tumor growth? In case you haven't guessed, I'm talking about vitamins A, E, and yes...D. Research shows that vitamin A can thwart cancer cell growth and reproduction. In fact, one recent study showed that supplementing with vitamin A (in the form of retinol) can cut a woman's skin cancer risk by as much as 40 percent. Vitamin E, meanwhile, may combat liver cancer. And D? Well this nutrient can cut risk of pancreatic and colorectal cancer by as much as 40 percent, too. If all that weren't enough, studies are pointing to vitamin E as a potential foil for childhood asthma. It may even be one key to preventing the most fearsome of all terminal illnesses, ALS. (Also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.) I could go on. But I figure I'll save the rest for future installments of my Reality Health Check. The takeaway of all this is that vitamins are here to stay. And with each passing day, my commitment to their use grows stronger and stronger. Thanks for taking the journey with me. I can't wait to see where it leads next. While I'm bending your ear about vitamins, I'm happy to report that the smear campaign on calcium is finally winding down. Well, almost. Let me explain. According to a recent study from Harvard, you can now fill up on calcium without worrying about your heart health. Researchers analyzed data from 690 women and 588 men with an average age of 60. They found that supplementing with this mineraldidn't increase calcium build-up in coronary arteries at doses up to 3,000 mg per day. Of course, that story didn't make front page headlines like the one before it. (Which, if you'll recall, suggested that taking calcium could cause a heart attack.) I can't say I'm surprised. But it's another win for our side, all the same. Unless, of course, you believe the results of a second new study, which appeared this month inJAMA. This one showed that calcium doses up to 1,000 mg are safe for women. But they may increase risk of heart disease death in men by 20 percent. Nutrition experts are already weighing in on this latest study's flawed design. But don't expect this little game of "he said, she said" to end anytime soon. As usual, pushing the public's panic buttons is just way too much fun. Until next time, Dr. Fred