The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) posted its recommendations for the use of multivitamins, minerals and vitamins in the prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer, and found that evidence supporting supplementation in preventing such diseases was inconclusive.
 
The study, “Vitamin, Mineral and Multivitamin Supplements for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer,” set out to systematically review evidence for the use of multivitamins or single nutrients and functionally related nutrient pairs for the prevention of CVD and cancer in the general population.
 
After examining research published from 2005-2013, including 26 studies (24 RCTs and two cohort studies), USPSTF “found no evidence of an effect for nutritional doses on CVD, cancer, or all-cause mortality in healthy individuals with a presumed generally adequate diet based on study inclusion criteria and baseline serum levels.”
 
“Cardiovascular disease and cancer have a significant health impact in America, and we all want to find ways to prevent these diseases,” stated task force chair Virginia Moyer, M.D., M.P.H. “However, we found that there is not enough evidence to determine whether taking single or paired nutrients or a multivitamin helps to prevent cardiovascular disease or cancer.”
 
While the report found inclusive evidence supporting the use of most supplements toward preventing CVD and cancer, USPSTF came out against the use of vitamin E and beta-carotene. “The evidence shows that there is no benefit to taking vitamin E and that beta-carotene can be harmful because it increases the risk of lung cancer in people who are already at increased risk for the disease,” said task force co-chair Michael LeFevre, M.D., M.S.P.H. 
 
Responding to the report, the Council for Responsible Nutrition’s Duffy MacKay, N.D., senior vice president, scientific and regulatory affairs, stated, “CRN appreciates the effort that the USPSTF has taken in releasing this final report to clarify its conclusion—that the evidence is insufficient to make a recommendation for the use of vitamin supplements for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer—should not be more broadly interpreted.”
 
He added, “We were pleased to see that in the USPSTF’s press release, the Task Force reminds everyone that ‘…this recommendation is limited to use of these vitamins and supplements specifically for the prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer.’ Despite the misleading headlines that resulted from the earlier draft report from the USPSTF published in December, both the draft and this final report make no recommendations on the value of vitamins and minerals for overall health and wellness or for filling nutrient gaps, the areas for which research tells us consumers are most likely to take them.”
 
CRN stressed that not having enough evidence “should not be considered as a lack of benefit as there is a big difference between lack of research and lack of positive results.” Furthermore, Dr. MacKay pointed out that, “what few studies there were that met the USPSTF criteria pointed to a potential promise for cancer protection.”
 
Dr. MacKay concluded, “We commend the Task Force for wisely recognizing that nutrients are not drugs, acknowledging that there are significant challenges to studying vitamins using methods similar to those used for studying pharmaceutical interventions. Importantly, the final report calls for new and innovative research methodologies… We strongly support both the need for more research and the need for the scientific community to come to terms with a rigorous approach to studying nutrition that may not reflect the current model of studying drugs.”