Vitamins: expensive supplements suffer from an evidence deficiency 

Buying good health is an alluring idea. Popping a multivitamin pill requires less effort than eating vegetables and taking daily exercise. Last year, Americans spent over $48bn on vitamins and dietary supplements, according to Grand View Research. That is up from $45bn the year before. The money is going to waste.

America’s love of multivitamins can be traced back to the early 1990s when the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act allowed supplement creators to claim they supported health without seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Over half of all US adults now take dietary supplements.

There are close to 100,000 to choose from. Vitamin C is thought to ward off colds, vitamin D to improve bone health and collagen powder to improve skin. The fitness industry has increased demand for protein powder while faddish diets such as keto recommend extra calcium and magnesium. On Instagram, brands such as Sugarbear Hair sell gummy bear vitamins they claim can improve hair strength.

Demand for vitamins is more impressive than evidence that they work.

This summer, the United States Preventive Services Task Force looked at 84 studies into vitamin impact and concluded there was insufficient evidence that taking multivitamins or single supplements prevented cancer or heart disease in otherwise healthy people. Some studies go further. In 2011, a trial found that men taking vitamin E were at increased risk of prostate cancer.

Not all supplements are superfluous. People who are pregnant are advised to take folic acid. Those with vitamin deficiencies due to ill health may benefit from particular supplements. But vitamin-rich fruits and vegetables are a better source.

It is true that taking expensive vitamins may trigger placebo effects, which can be curiously efficacious even if you suspect their existence.

But a cup of cheap herb tea could also do the trick. If you spend heavily on vitamins and supplements you really are flushing your money away. Vitamin takers might claim their own good health is proof. But in the US, this group tends to already be on the healthy and wealthy side. Vitamin-buyers are less likely to smoke and more likely to exercise and have health insurance than the general population. Bodies will naturally expel excess nutrients they do not need. For most people, expensive vitamin regimes are a waste of time.

The Lex team is interested in hearing more from readers. Please tell us what you think of vitamins and food supplements in the comments section below.