DOES MULTIVITAMIN SUPPLEMENTATION PREVENT INFECTIONS IN HEALTHY ELDERLY SUBJECTS - A CONTROLLED TRIAL

We performed a double blind randomized study in order to assess the ef ficacy a multivitamin supplement for the prevention of common infectio ns in healthy elderly subjects. Non-institutionalized, independent sub jects over 60 years of age, living in the Nevers area (central France) were recruited by announcements and randomly assigned to a treatment or a placebo group. The treatment or placebo tablets were to be taken daily for 4 months. The principal criterion of response was the incide nce of infections, as recorded from a detailed questionnaire presented at entrance, in the middle (2 months) and at the end (4 months) of th e study. Blood samples were taken at the entrance in the study and aft er two and four months in order to monitor vitamin status. No signific ant difference was found between the two groups for the incidence of i nfections. In fact the observed incidences during the two two-month pe riods were higher in the treatment (0.38 and 0.21) than in the placebo group (0.29 and 0.13). After two months and after four months of supp lementation, blood vitamin indicators of the subjects were significant ly higher in the treatment than in the placebo group for vitamins B1, B2, B-6, E and folates (p < 0. 001). The improvement of the vitamin C status was slightly higher in the treatment than in the placebo group. For vitamin A status, the evolution was similar in the two groups. In conclusion, short-term supplementation of healthy elderly subjects wi th the investigated supplement is not likely to afford a meaningful pr otection against common infections.