Taking vitamins B6 and B12 excessively increases the risk of hip fractures

Health and Medical

Older women who eat high-dose vitamin B6 and B12 supplements may have a higher risk of hip fracture than others, according to a US study.

Previous studies have linked B6 and B12 to lower risk of heart disease, but the results of some other studies have been mixed because they link older adults to fractures, the researchers note in the journal Gamma Network.

The current dietary guidelines in the United States recommend that women over the age of 50 be fed 1.5 milligrams daily from 6 to younger, with a recommended amount of 2.4 mg daily.

Vitamin B6

To conduct the current study, researchers tracked nearly 76,000 nurses in the United States for an average of 21 years and conducted a detailed survey of their diets every four years. Almost all participants in the study were taking vitamin intake of food and supplements higher than recommended.

Some 2,300 women had hip fractures during the study and half were injured before they reached the age of 76. Those with the highest intake of the two types of vitamin were 47 percent more likely than those who ate the least amount.

"Many people take supplements without clear indications and supplements that contain high doses of vitamin are available in pharmacies and across the Internet," said lead researcher Dr. Hakon Mayer of Oslo University in Norway.

"Our findings add to other reports that excessive intake of supplements containing large doses of the vitamin may lead to unexpected adverse effects," he said by e-mail.

Related topics

(tagsToTranslate) Food supplements (t) Vitamin B 12 (t) Heart disease (t) Fracture fractures (t) Meat