A 20-year study of 400,000 U.S. adults found that regular multivitamin use does not lower mortality risk, challenging the effectiveness of multivitamins in enhancing longevity.
A large analysis of data from nearly 400,000 healthy U.S. adults followed for more than 20 years has found no association between regular multivitamin use and lower risk of death.
The study, led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health ’s National Cancer Institute, was published June 26, 2024, in JAMA Network Open . Many adults in the United States take multivitamins with the hope of improving their health. However, the benefits and harms of regular multivitamin use remain unclear.
Previous studies of multivitamin use and mortality have yielded mixed results and been limited by short follow-up times. To more deeply explore the relationship between long-term regular multivitamin use and overall mortality and death from cardiovascular disease and cancer, the researchers analyzed data from three large, geographically diverse prospective studies involving a total of 390,124 U.S.
adults who were followed for more than 20 years. The participants included in this analysis were generally healthy, with no history of cancer or other chronic diseases. Analysis and Results Because the study population was so large and included lengthy follow-up and extensive information on demographics and lifestyle factors, the researchers were able to mitigate the effects of possible biases that may have influenced .
