Take vitamins or no? Controversy supercedes the studies

by
in science on (#2S5R)
story imageEmily Oster covers an old topic that's still controversial:
Many medical studies show positive health effects from higher vitamin levels. The only problem? These studies often can't tease out the effect of the vitamins from the effect of other factors, such as generally healthy living. Studies that attempt to do this typically show no impact from vitamin use - or only a very tiny one on a small subset of people. The truth is that for most people, vitamin supplementation is simply a waste of time.
[Author note: The article avoids what I'd consider the main question: since these studies are not exactly new, why does my doctor still recommend a multivitamin every time I visit? And what other things does our society universally accept that might be pointless?]
Reply 10 comments

This is Five Thirty Eight Now? (Score: 0)

by Anonymous Coward on 2014-09-08 21:34 (#2S60)

I know they "pivoted" to include sports and other things even more trivial than politics, but I expected a little more... meat on the bones for a 538 article.

Anyway:

1. Yeah this is old news, and

2. "Supercede" is not quite the word you were looking for.

3. Your doctor sucks. :)

I'm still okay with taking them (Score: 0)

by Anonymous Coward on 2014-09-08 22:38 (#2S62)

I'd assume they recommend them because cost is negligible, and they won't do any harm either. Maybe you are part of that small subset.

Re: I'm still okay with taking them (Score: 0)

by Anonymous Coward on 2014-09-08 23:23 (#2S65)

But those extra few seconds (increasingly rare in medicine) are far better spent advising exercise and losing weight, no? Even just "eat more vegetables" has got to be FAR more beneficial than mentioning vitamins, I would guess. Might as well be recommending horoscopes or chiropractic if you're going to waste time talking about vitamins.

Re: I'm still okay with taking them (Score: 2, Informative)

by bryan@pipedot.org on 2014-09-09 07:14 (#2S6C)

My optometrist (that I visited mainly because they where allied with the LASIK operation that I undertook) not only advocated vitamins, but a vitamin monthly subscription called "Juice Plus." On my last appointment, they made this sales pitch so obvious that I thought they would also ask me if I wanted a vacuum cleaner, or maybe some Cutco knives. I'm convinced that this doctor's office doesn't really care about the vitamins, but cares more about getting a monthly monetary "cut" from the pill manufacturer for the referral.

I don't visit that doctor anymore.

Re: I'm still okay with taking them (Score: 1, Insightful)

by Anonymous Coward on 2014-09-09 13:07 (#2S6V)

Optometrists and "chiropractors" are both on that fringe between real medicine and complete and utter bullshit. The chiropractors are really only clinging on by the flimsiest of threads...

Meanwhile real doctors push real prescription drugs that are being campaigned at them by pharmaceutical salespeople. No escape I guess.

Two for one (Score: 2, Insightful)

by bryan@pipedot.org on 2014-09-09 07:19 (#2S6D)

Instead of taking a vitamin pill, eat a bowl of cold cereal. Most of the major brands have all evolved into being essentially a multivitamin served with milk.

Re: Two for one (Score: 2, Funny)

by zafiro17@pipedot.org on 2014-09-09 08:07 (#2S6J)

I kind of thought it was a big bowl of sugar and coloring with milk, where the nutrients were unintended side products of the manufacturing process? :)

Re: Two for one (Score: 4, Funny)

by nightsky30@pipedot.org on 2014-09-09 11:27 (#2S6Q)

I think both of these are true. Can we split the difference and call it a big bowl of Flintstones chewables in milk?

Not just pointless (Score: 2, Interesting)

by Anonymous Coward on 2014-09-09 08:02 (#2S6G)

Many vitamin supplements are actually dangerous. Some, like vitamin A for example, are explicitly toxic in the case of overdose. Others are linked with certain cancers over time.

Why does your doctor recommend a multi-vitamin every time he sees you? Maybe because he wants to see you again soon.

If you eat a varied diet, you get enough vitamins. If you notice any symptoms of deficiency, eat more of the foods that contain whatever you are deficient in.

Supplements are a con. They often include dangerous remedies or dangerous chemical additives as binders, colourants or whatever, to give them more pop.

It is unwise to take anything on a daily basis. Maybe your doctor is trying to desensitise you to taking something on a daily basis so that he can progressively addict you to more and more dangerous substances and thus ensure your continued dependence on him and more and more business from you as the side effects of all the things he has you one start to stack up into actual illnesses requiring oh more poisonous chronic medications and more visits to him.

Multi-vitamins, the gateway drug of choice among today's white collared (*ahem* coated) pusher.

Perhaps a better medical insurance scheme would be one where we pay the doctor only so long as we are well.

Re: Not just pointless (Score: 2, Insightful)

by wootery@pipedot.org on 2014-09-09 15:38 (#2S77)

Maybe because he wants to see you again soon.
Maybe your doctor is trying to desensitise you to taking something on a daily basis so that he can progressively addict you to more and more dangerous substances and thus ensure your continued dependence on him and more and more business from you as the side effects of all the things he has you one start to stack up into actual illnesses requiring oh more poisonous chronic medications and more visits to him.
Your points about the pills being a scam seem compelling (though unfortunately uncited), but I see no call for this conspiracy-theory bullshit; ignorance seems far more likely than malevolence.