Major Study Looks to Nutritional Supplements & Heart Health

Boston researchers are launching a large, national trial of vitamin D and fish oil to see whether the dietary supplements reduce the risk of developing cancer or cardiovascular disease. They are also testing the idea that lower levels of vitamin D might explain higher rates of these diseases among African-Americans.

Boston researchers are launching a large, national trial of vitamin D and fish oil to see whether the dietary supplements reduce the risk of developing cancer or cardiovascular disease. They are also testing the idea that lower levels of vitamin D might explain higher rates of these diseases among African-Americans.

Dr. JoAnn Manson and Dr. Julie Buring, both of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, hope to enroll 20,000 healthy older people in the $20 million study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

One quarter of the participants will be black. The researchers believe higher rates of cancer, heart disease, and stroke among blacks, compared with whites, might be related to dark skin’s lower ability to make vitamin D from absorbing sunlight, and they want to establish whether taking vitamin D supplements could reduce or eliminate these disparities.

“African-Americans have a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency and a greater frequency of certain types of cancer and diabetes and hypertension, so I think that it will be of great importance to look at whether something as simple as taking a vitamin D supplement can narrow these health gaps,’’ said Manson, who believes the study is one of the first large-scale randomized trials to target a specific group at higher risk for a deficiency of nutrients. “It would be wonderful if something as simple as a vitamin D pill could narrow that health gap.’’

Women over 65 and men over 60 with no history of cancer or cardiovascular disease will be randomly assigned into four groups.

Some will take daily pills with about 2,000 international units of vitamin D and about 1 gram of fish oil. Others will take pills containing no active ingredients. In the two other groups, participants will get one of the supplements and one placebo. “I think it’s important to be cautiously optimistic and not jump on the bandwagon to take megadoses of supplements before a clinical trial helps to clarify their role.’’

Treatment will last five years. Participants will not need to travel to Boston because study forms and pills will be mailed, according to www.vitalstudy.org, the website for the study.

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Selected nutrients already have been found to promote cardiovascular health, notably plant sterol, soluble fibers from oatmeal, barley, psyllium and beans, and mono and polyunsatured fats in place of saturated fats. For more information on nutritional approaches to cardiovascular health, go to Kardea Nutrition. For heart health cooking recipes incorporating these key nutrients, go to Kardea Gourmet