While many vitamin supplements can improve your health, the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) has issued a warning regarding one vitamin-based supplement: it may increase your risk of developing lung cancer.
Vitamins are substances that you must have in order to grow and be healthy. Although your food should provide you with all of the vitamins you require, some people use dietary supplements to supplement their intake. According to growing research, taking this way may pose serious health concerns.
A specific dietary supplement, beta-carotene, has been associated with an increased risk of lung cancer.
“There is strong evidence from randomised controlled trials that high-dose beta-carotene supplements may increase the risk of lung cancer in some people,” says the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF).
In those who smoke or have been exposed to asbestos, the use of beta-carotene has been linked to an increased risk of lung cancer.
One research of 29,000 male smokers discovered an 18 percent increase in lung cancer risk in the group that received 20 mg of beta-carotene daily for five to eight years.
Another research of 18,000 adults discovered that people with a history of smoking and/or asbestos exposure had a 28 percent higher risk of lung cancer.
For four years, these participants consumed 30 mg of beta-carotene and 25,000 units of retinol (a kind of vitamin A).
However, a study of 22,000 male physicians, many of whom were current or former smokers, discovered no increase in lung cancer.
For 12 years, these individuals consumed 50 mg of beta-carotene every other day.
“If you smoke or have a history of smoking or asbestos exposure, you should not take large amounts of beta-carotene supplements for long periods of time,” warns the Mayo Clinic.
The health body continues: “However, foods that are rich in beta-carotene are considered safe and appear to lower the risk of some types of cancer and possibly heart disease.”
Beta-carotene gives yellow and orange color to fruit and vegetables.
It gets converted into vitamin A in the body, where it performs the same functions as vitamin A.
The main sources of beta-carotene are:
- Yellow and green (leafy) vegetables – such as spinach, carrots and red peppers
- Yellow fruit – such as mango, papaya and apricots.
According to experts, you should be able to get the amount of beta-carotene you need by eating a varied and balanced diet.
Do not take more than 7mg of beta-carotene supplements a day unless advised to by a doctor.
According to the WCRF, there is no strong evidence that dietary supplements, apart from calcium for colorectal cancer, can reduce cancer risk.
“For most people consumption of the right food and drink is more likely to protect against cancer than dietary supplements,” explains the health body.
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