American Medical Association Study of research Reports on Vitamins, March, 2007

Early in 2007, the American Medial Association published an analysis of reports of 47 studies on the use of mainly 5 vitamins and antioxidants, while ONDROX formulation contains 37 items. Based on the simplified and dramatized press reports of the AMA analysis, it may have left the impression that all supplements are not as beneficial as reported in earlier studies, and generally believed over the years.

Problem in these 47 trials generally is that (1) they used very high levels of the individual ingredient (vitamin or antioxidant) in the studies; (2) the subjects are already in questionable health condition.

More than 30 years ago when researchers at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center conducted tests on antioxidants, they had found that excessive dosage of antioxidants (including vitamins) can turn them from being antioxidant to PRO-OXIDANT. Furthermore, a minimal optimal amounts of each ingredient acting in synergy with certain other ingredients resulted in optimal value in protecting against cancer; that was the basis on which ONDROX was formulated.

Below are our comments on the AMA report and comparison on the contents of ONDROX and the individual ingredients used in the studies analyzed.

COMMENTS ON AMA STUDY OF
RESEARCH REPORTS ON VITAMINS
March, 2007

Did the study conclude all vitamins are bad for you? No. The analysis looked primarily at 47 studies of beta carotene, vitamins A, C and E and selenium. The broad conclusion was that high-dose supplementation with beta carotene and vitamins A and E could be harmful. The study found no benefit from high doses of vitamin C and a potential benefit from selenium.

The other problem is that most vitamin research focuses on unhealthy people. For instance, a recent study of about 9,500 heart patients evaluated long-term use of 400 IUs, or international units, of daily vitamin E.

What doses of vitamins were taken by people in the various studies? Most of the studies involved very high doses of antioxidants that far exceed the daily dietary reference intakes (DRI) set forth by health authorities. The doses were also far higher than the antioxidant levels found in a typical serving of fruits and vegetables.

The DRI for vitamin C is 75 mg for women and 90 mg for men. In the JAMA review, the dose averaged 488 mg, but went as high as 2 grams. The vitamin E DRI is 22 IUs a day, but the study averaged 569 IUs and went as high as 5,000. For selenium, the DRI is 55 micrograms but the study average was 99 micrograms.

For vitamin A, the DRI is 700 IUs for women and 900 IUs for men, but the study average dose was 20,219 IUs.

The data are mixed about vitamin C, but a daily dose of up to 2 grams probably won't hurt you.

P.S. Recent negative report based on epidemiological study1 also used 500 mg of C, and 600 I.U. of E, which are 200% and 600% respectively of what is contained in Ondrox. Also effect of synergy in the combination of certain antioxidants was not taken into consideration, nor the possibility that excessive dosage of certain antioxidant could cause it to become pro-oxidant. Missing in the publicity was a commentary by the Senior Investigator that accompanied the report, noting that they (the vitamins) might provide benefits to those individuals who are not at risk for cardiovascular disease.

¹ Harvard Medical School and published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 12/31/2008