Vitamin pills don't prevent infections

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A new study suggests that taking vitamin and mineral supplements does nothing to stop infections in older people living at home.
Many older people have vitamin or mineral deficiencies which arise from a less than optimal diet. This might lead them to be more prone to infection. In fact, at least a quarter of older people in the UK are said to take some kind of supplement to help overcome these deficiencies. But how effective are they?

A team at Aberdeen University, Scotland, now reports upon a study of 910 men and women aged 65 or over living in the community who took either a daily multivitamin and multimineral supplement or a placebo tablet for one year. During this time, the participants kept a diary of their visits to the doctor for advice and treatment of an infection, of the number of days they had an infection and of their quality of life. Also, note was taken of any antibiotic prescriptions and hospital admissions.

There was no difference between the two groups, which suggests that multivitamin and multimineral supplements do not prevent infections in older people. This is consistent with what other studies have found. Further research is needed to see if supplements can help those at higher risk of infection or those who are living in care.

Source
British Medical Journal 6th August 2005 Volume 331 pages 324-327