Dietitian warns against taking extremely common supplements that could lead to cancer

A dietitian on TikTok has warned against taking extremely common supplements due to the less thought about risks.

Trying to keep your body in tip top shape can actually prove quite a difficult task and a dietitian has now issued a warning for people who regularly take supplements.

Nichole, who goes by oncology.nutrition.rd on TikTok, suggested people could be increasing their risk of cancer by taking too many supplements or supplements that exceed the suggested daily amounts.

Speaking in a video shared on the platform earlier this month, she warned against common tablets taken like vitamin C or IV vitamins.

She said: “Supplements increase cancer risk. Hi, my name is Nichole and I am a cancer dietician, let’s talk more about this.

“A lot of people will take high-dose supplements to try to reduce risk of cancer or improve their health. People will say ‘vitamin C or IV vitamins or things like that are better for you, give your body more'... that is incorrect.”

She also addressed the suggestion and belief that you would simply urinate out the excess that your body can’t process.

She continued: “You don’t just pee out excess supplements your body has to process it, specifically your liver. When you have high levels, like 200 percent of daily value... and check those supplements they will say like 10,000 percent daily value, 8,000 percent, 25,000 percent daily value.

“That high level of excess will then become a free radical and start to damage and break down your cell DNA. It will harm your cells at high levels. You are never going to reach those high levels with food, never.

“You can sit down and have 25 kiwis. You are never going to be able to reach that high level of supplement that is in all those supplement pills. Eat foods to get your micronutrients deficiencies unless you have a prescription from your doctor, food is enough.”

People on social media were not entirely convinced, however, and highlighted specific situations where supplements benefited them.

This isn’t to say it did not also increase their risk of cancer, though.

One user commented: “The key here is the daily value (like you briefly mentioned), especially for pregnant (or in my case TTC) people, I think there’s a ton more nuance than ‘supplements are harmful’.

And another said: "This isn't specific enough. Yes, high dose vitamins can cause cancer. However, taking a broccoli extract supplement, for example,to reduce the risk of prostate cancer, has shown efficacy."

While some people had their reservations, Nichole’s claims are not new and a study previously carried out by the University of Colorado indicated that people who took extra vitamins and minerals were more likely to have health problems.

In the 2015 study, taking more than the recommended dosage of a beta carotene - often promoted as a supplement to boost the immune system - was found to increase the risk of developing lung cancer and heart disease by up to 20%.

Prof Tim Byers, associate director for cancer prevention at the university’s cancer centre, said, as per The Guardian: “We have discovered that taking extra vitamins and minerals do more harm than good.

"We found that the supplements were actually not beneficial for their health. In fact, some people actually got more cancer while on the vitamins.”