Over Time, Vitamins May Lower Colon Cancer Risk
 (NY, Reuters Health, 10/07/03)

Dr. Eric J. Jacobs of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, and colleagues, conducted the Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort, a follow-up to the Harvard Nurse's Health Study. The purpose of the study was to determine how current and past intake of multivitamins affects the risk of developing colorectal cancer. The researchers had records from the original study that showed the subjects' vitamin intake in 1982. They then gathered data on current vitamin usage for the 145,000 older adults who began participating in the new study in 1992 and 1993. From 1992 to 1997, the investigators logged 797 cases of colorectal cancer among the participants. When the scientists analyzed the data and adjusted for other "health-conscious behaviors," they found that long-term, regular vitamin users had a 30% reduced risk of developing colorectal cancer; whereas, recent vitamin takers did not experience this protective effect.