A cancer dietician has revealed that popular vitamin supplements may actually be doing us more harm than good – in some cases, even increasing the risk of developing the disease.
Nichole Andrews is a registered dietician and nutritionist specialising in oncology, with over 15 years of experience in the field.
The 38-year-old regularly takes to TikTok to share advice with her 200,000 followers and, in her latest post, shared the surprising little-known fact – as well as the top five to avoid.
“I know how amazing and powerful nutrition can be to help survivors have better treatment outcomes and reduce risk of recurrence,” Nichole, who is based in Tri-Cities, Washington, US told Need To Know of her work in the field.
“Sadly there is so much misinformation out there, that people cannot eat well – so I am so happy to clear up that confusion and help people eat with confidence.”
Having previously shared the foods she will never touch due to leading a “cancer prevention lifestyle” – including alcohol, pepperoni, and sugary beverages – Nichole has now shared a rather surprising potentially risky option: vitamin supplements.
In one post, she shared five to avoid, saying: “Supplements increase cancer risk.
“Apple cider vinegar capsules can irritate your digestive system, [and] they also can harm your tooth enamel due to their high acidity.
“There’s no solid evidence linking them to weight loss or improved digestion.”
Next up was collagen, which Nichole admits is “essential” for skin and joints, but said that the body “naturally synthesizes enough” from having a well-balanced diet, which the dietician says is what we should be focusing on.
Next, was skin, hair and nail gummies, which she says “often have way too much biotin in”.
Nichole continued: “While biotin is great, you can get it from whole food sources, as too much biotin can interfere with lab tests.”
Moving on to turmeric capsules, she said: “At elevated levels, [the spice] can irritate your stomach levels and affect liver function.
“[Instead] focus on culinary sources of turmeric.”
Next she spoke about vitamin C supplements.
Nichole said: “Excessive vitamin C can lead to kidney stones, GI issues and interfere with other nutrient absorption.
“Your body can definitely get enough vitamin C from whole fruits and vegetables.”
However, Nichole clarified that if a doctor has recommended taking a supplement, this is safe.
The risk, she says, comes from taking high doses that have not been prescribed – and in particular for cancer survivors, who are at a heightened risk of the disease returning.
Nichole said: “It’s when cancer survivors – because unfortunately they are subject to this at a higher percentage than everybody else – take supplements as a way to ‘cure’ or ‘have it never come back’, which is not true.
“What happens is, cancer survivors over-supplement so many different things – herbal things, things they don’t even understand from different languages – all these different things that can be harmful to your liver and organs.
“And, at very high doses […] can end up damaging your cells or organs, and put more strain on your liver, because it has to process them out.
“It’s different when you have a deficiency you can’t get up with food and your doctor has recommended it and regulated it, versus just high dose supplementing all the time.”
