Multivitamins May Not Prevent Heart Attack and Stroke

Multivitamin and mineral supplements may not help lower risk of death from cardiovascular diseases. They may not even prevent heart attack and strokes, reveals a new study.

Taking multivitamin and mineral supplements may not prevent heart attacks, strokes or even cardiovascular death, reveals a new analysis of 18 studies.

The study, published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, found no association between taking multivitamin and mineral supplements and a lower risk of death from cardiovascular diseases.

What is a Heart Attack | How to Prevent Heart Attacks - Myocardial Infarction Smoking
Heart attack is the death of the heart muscle due to loss of blood supply. Simple guidelines to avoid heart attack are listed.

‘Consuming a heart-healthy diet, exercising regularly, tobacco cessation, controlling blood pressure and unhealthy cholesterol levels can prevent cardiovascular diseases.’

"We meticulously evaluated the body of scientific evidence. We found no clinical benefit of multivitamin and mineral use to prevent heart attacks, strokes or cardiovascular death," said lead author Joonseok Kim, Assistant Professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

According to the researchers, the American Heart Association does not recommend using multivitamin or mineral supplements to prevent cardiovascular diseases.

Controversy about the effectiveness of multivitamin and mineral supplements to prevent cardiovascular diseases has been going on for years, despite numerous well-conducted research studies suggesting they don't help.

Heart Attack - Overview
Heart attack is the death of the heart muscle due to loss of blood supply. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Other names for heart attack include acute myocardial infarction, coronary thrombosis, and coronary occlusion.

The researchers set out to combine the results from previously published scientific studies to help clarify the topic.

For the study, the research team performed a "meta-analysis," putting together the results from 18 individual published studies with 20,19,862 participants and having an average of 12 years of follow-up.

Tips to Prevent Heart Attacks
Heart Attack occurs when the flow of oxygenated blood to heart muscles is hindered or stopped due to built-up of plaques in coronary arteries. Heart Attack is the No.1 killer among Indians.

They included clinical trials and prospective cohort studies in the general population evaluating associations between multivitamin/mineral supplementation and cardiovascular disease outcomes.

"Although multivitamin and mineral supplements taken in moderation rarely cause direct harm, we urge people to protect their heart health by understanding their individual risk for heart disease and stroke and working with a healthcare provider to create a plan that uses proven measures to reduce risk," Kim said.

Coronary Heart Disease - Causes, Symptoms, Risk Factors, Diagnosis, Tretment
In coronary heart disease, blood is unable to flow through blocked arteries. The main symptom is chest pain or angina. Treatment is with medications or surgery.

"These include a heart-healthy diet, exercise, tobacco cessation, controlling blood pressure and unhealthy cholesterol levels, and when needed, medical treatment," Kim noted.

Source-IANS