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March 1st, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda THURSDAY, March 1 (HealthDay News) — People who take vitamin A
supplements might be cutting their risk of developing the deadly skin
cancer melanoma, a new study suggests.
Supplements of a type of vitamin A called retinol could be a protective
agent against melanoma; however, too much can result in serious side
effects, researchers say.
“We found a protective effect from supplemental vitamin A, more than
you would get from a multivitamin,” said lead researcher Dr. Maryam
Asgari, a dermatologist and investigator at Kaiser Permanente Northern
California, in Oakland.
However, people should not be taking vitamin A in the hope it will
reduce the risk of melanoma, she said.
“For us to really be able to recommend that, we would need a trial,”
Asgari said. “Based on these findings I wouldn’t recommend that the
average person start taking vitamin A to prevent melanoma; more data needs
to be obtained to make this recommendation,” she said.
The study appeared online March 1 in the Journal of Investigative
Dermatology.
For the study, Asgari’s team collected data on almost 70,000 people
participating in a study on vitamins and lifestyle in Washington state.
After about five years of follow-up, 566 people had developed
melanoma.
Taking vitamin A (retinol) supplements was associated with a 40 percent
reduction in risk of developing melanoma, according to the study.
But while the study uncovered an association between retinol
supplementation and melanoma risk, it did not prove a cause-and-effect
relationship.
In addition, no relationship was seen between melanoma risk and vitamin
A in the diet. Asgari also noted that the dietary data of those in the
study was unreliable. And any beneficial effect appeared to be limited to
retinol and not other forms of vitamin A called carotenoids, the study
authors said.
Gender and sun exposure may also be a factor in how retinol could
prevent melanoma, the researchers added. The protective effect of vitamin
A was stronger among women and in areas of the skin exposed to the sun,
they said.
Retinol is found in foods such as liver, eggs and milk, and appears to
have an effect on cell differentiation and growth, the researchers
noted.
Previous research in mice has found that retinol and related compounds
can decrease the size of tumors and prolong survival in melanoma.
The current recommendation for vitamin A for adults is 700 micrograms
to 900 micrograms a day. However, taking more than 2,800 micrograms a day
can lead to significant side effects such as birth defects, liver
abnormalities, reduced bone mineral density and mental problems, according
to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Doris Day, a dermatologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City,
said she is unsure about the effectiveness of vitamin A supplements.
“I will say that based on data and research, using vitamin A on the
skin has been helpful to protect against skin cancers,” she said.
However, Day does think that vitamin A in the diet also protects
against skin cancer. “Diet is your number-one source,” she noted.
Supplements may have an additional benefit but they don’t replace a
healthy diet, she explained. “Everything you put into your body has an
effect on your skin. Your skin is another organ system that affects and
reflects your other organ systems. When you eat antioxidants, like vitamin
A, you are supporting your skin in a direct way and you are increasing
protection against [ultraviolet] radiation and repair cells after UV
radiation,” Day said.
But the best way to prevent skin cancer is to use sun protection and
limit time spent in direct sun, Day stressed. “You need to be sun-smart,”
she said.
Dr. Robert Graham, an internist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York
City, added that based on these findings, “there is some promise of
vitamin A supplementation as protection against melanoma.”
More information
To learn more about melanoma, visit the U.S.
National Library of Medicine.
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