Vitamin E linked to prostate cancer

MEN taking daily vitamin E are more likely to get prostate cancer than those not taking the dietary supplement, a new study has revealed.

The study involved nearly 35,000 north Americans.

It means that over a decade, one or two men in 100 taking vitamin E would be expected to get prostate cancer, said researchers.

The findings were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"If you have enough of these vitamins in your system, extra doesn't help you. too much of something like this can be harmful," said Eric Klein from the Cleveland Clinic, one of the study's authors.

The findings come on the heels of a study suggesting that older women who take multivitamins have slightly increased death rates compared to those who don't.

"There's a theme here that taking vitamins is not only not helpful but could be harmful in people who are not deficient in vitamins," Mr Klein added.

hnews@herald.ie