Research update Multivitamin use linked to fewer heart attacks for women

By Michelle Guillemard. New research suggests women who take a daily multivitamin may be at a reduced risk of heart disease.

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, observed that women with no history of heart disease who used either multivitamins alone or multivitamins in combination with other supplements had a lower risk of heart disease. The association was stronger among women who used multivitamins for more than 5 years.

Over 30,000 Swedish women aged 49-83 took part in the study.

Women with no history of heart disease who took multivitamins only were associated with a 27 percent lower risk of heart disease, and women who took other supplements as well as multivitamins were associated with a 30 percent lower risk.

“From a public health point of view, it is important to evaluate whether multivitamins should be recommended to prevent myocardial infarction,” stated the researchers.

Most multivitamins contain a variety of nutrients, like antioxidant vitamins, B vitamins and minerals such as magnesium and selenium.

“The potential protective effects of multivitamins on MI may arise from antioxidant vitamins, B vitamins, and minerals if included,” the researchers noted. “Even if multivitamins contain low amounts of antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin C and vitamin E, they may be involved in mitigating the atherosclerotic process by scavenging free radicals.”

If you’d like to find out more about the research, you can read the full study here:

Multivitamin use and the risk of myocardial infarction: a population-based cohort of Swedish women 
Authors: S. Rautiainen, A. Åkesson, E.B. Levitan, R. Morgenstern, M.A Mittlemanand A. Wolk 
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29371