Vitamins won't ward off pneumonia risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Taking lots of vitamins does not reduce the likelihood of catching pneumonia, at least among well-nourished women, according to a new report.

"In malnourished individuals and in the elderly, there is some evidence to support the role of vitamin supplementation in reducing pneumonia risk," Dr. Mark I. Neuman from Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts told Reuters Health. However, little is known about the effect of vitamins on the occurrence of pneumonia in healthy, well-nourished women.

To investigate, Neuman and his associates studied data from more than 80,000 women participating in the Nurses Health Study to see if vitamin intake altered the risk of pneumonia over a 10-year period.

After accounting for the effects of such factors as smoking, body-mass index, alcohol use, and physical activity, he and his colleagues found that intake of vitamin A, C, or E had no effect on the chances of developing pneumonia.

Similarly, the investigators report in the April issue of The American Journal of Medicine, there was no relationship between intake of other vitamins and micronutrients and the risk of pneumonia. This held even after adjusting for dose levels of the various vitamins and when considering vitamin intake from diet alone.

There was a hint, however, that vitamins might benefit smokers. Specifically, smokers who had a higher intake of vitamin E from their diet had with a 54 percent lower risk of pneumonia than smokers with lower intakes. Nonetheless, Neuman cautioned, those results have to be confirmed before any recommendations can be made.

SOURCE: American Journal of Medicine, April 2007.