Supplements - stop poisoning yourselves!

Selenium, Vitamin E and Prostate cancer

Once again, supplement use comes under attack. I still recommend a balanced diet and avoidance of dietary supplements; the majority of which are unproven.

However, researchers are continuing to review and mostly disprove their benefits.

Selenium, a necessary minor element in the diet had been touted as prevention for prostate cancer; as has Vitamin E which also has many other purported benefits.

Now a study has been published which not only shows that these products do not prevent prostate cancer, but apparently increases the risk of aggressive cancers!! This is in doses above normal requirements; which of course we all get in a balanced diet.

In a brief review of web sites I found many claims that selenium protects the prostate! And the claims for Vitamin E are almost endless! Although low dose vitamin E seems to delay Alzheimer's in a recent study, higher doses have been associated with increased mortality.

The bottom line is that we should not be trying to extract the supposed active ingredient from healthy foods (unless you plan to try and make money out of selling supplements!). Just eat right and stay healthy!!