Selenium

Don’t count on the new media or popular health publications to keep you fully informed about new medical findings. An article published in the December 25, 1996, issue of the Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA) showed that 200 mcg of supplemental selenium a day reduced overall cancer mortality by 50% in humans compared to a placebo group not receiving supplemental selenium. This 9-year study, published in the American Medical Association’s scientific journal (JAMA), demonstrated that a low-cost mineral supplement could cut the risk of dying from cancer in half.

In the prior week’s issue of JAMA (December 18, 1996), an article was published indicating that folic acid could substantially reduce cardiovascular disease risk. The selenium cancer study received some media attention, but the folic acid cardiovascular study did not. The fact is that the news media have not been consistent in reporting on studies that substantiate the disease-preventing role of dietary supplements, even when these studies appear in the most prestigious medical journals in the world.

One of the most compelling reports that high-potency supplements extend lifespan in humans was published in the August 1996 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. This study involved 11,178 elderly people,
who participated in a trial to establish the effects of vitamin supplements on mortality. This study showed that the use of vitamin E reduced the risk of death from all causes by 34%. Effects were strongest for coronary artery disease, where vitamin E resulted in a 63% reduction in death from heart attack. In addition, the use of vitamin E resulted in a 59% reduction in cancer mortality. When the effects of vitamin C and E were combined, overall mortality was reduced by 42% (compared to 34% for vitamin E alone). These results are the most significant evidence yet presented about the value of vitamin supplementation, yet the media failed to report on it.

If you are healthy now, and want to stay that way, the Life Extension Foundation has designed protocols that incorporate the best-documented disease-preventing nutrients and hormones.

Ann’s NOTE: Lest you think the idea of dietary supplements are new, this article was written in 1999.  Life Extension Foundation was among the very first resources I found when seeking alternatives to conventional medicine.