Vitamin E Linked To Lung Cancer

A U.S. study of over 77,000 people showed that increasing you daily dose of Vitamin E to 400 mg could increase you risk of lung cancer by 28%. Neither Vitamin C nor folic acid showed an increase in the risk of lung cancer. This study was done over the course of four years on individuals between the ages of 50 and 76. Vitamin E is thought to be an antioxidant, but at high dosages, researches think it could act as pro-oxidant causing damage to cells. Many scientists and researchers are now saying that the appropriate amount of vitamins and minerals can be obtained by a healthy diet and that supplemental nutrients are not needed. "Research repeatedly shows that a healthy, balanced diet can reduce your risk of some cancers while giving you all the vitamins you need," Henry Scowcroft, senior science information officer at Cancer Research UK. In a previous study done in 2002, beta-carotene was seen to increase chances for lung cancer by 18%. This leads us to wonder if there are also many more supplements and vitamins that when taken in excess, actually do harm to the body just like this study showed Vitamin E does.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7271189.stm