BOSTON (voa) – A new study finds that older women who ingest heavy doses of vitamin A are more prone to suffering a hip fracture.
The study was conducted by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and the results appear in the latest edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The researchers found that females with the highest intake of Vitamin A – both from food and vitamin supplements – nearly doubled their risk of hip fractures, compared with women who took the lowest amounts of the vitamin.
Vitamin A is included in dietary supplements and fortified foods because it promotes healthy skin and bone growth. It is also found in natural food sources, including liver and fish.
The Institute of Medicine – a private U.S.-based organization that sets recommended daily allowances for nutrients – says women should only take about half the Vitamin A dose that’s found in most multivitamins sold in the United States.
The lead author of the new study says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration needs to revise vitamin supplement labels.
