Vitamins & Supplements

Dont count on extra vitamin D to improve arthritis in your knees. Although some observational studies have suggested that vitamin D supplements might benefit knee osteoarthritis, a new clinical trial published in JAMA proved disappointing.

Your immune system weakens as your body ages, making older adults more susceptible to infections. But the mineral zinc may play an important role in staving off such infections. Previous research at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) at Tufts has shown that 30% of nursing-home residents have low blood levels of zinc, and that those low in zinc were at significantly higher risk of pneumonia.

A dietary pattern high in vegetables and fruits such as carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, peppers, cantaloupe and dark leafy greens might help protect you against breast cancer. According to a new analysis of data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study, women with higher blood levels of alpha- and beta-carotene were significantly less likely to have breast cancer.

If you've got your AARP card but you're still eating the way you did in your 20s, it's time for your diet to act your age. While most nutritional guidance is "ageless," you do need to make some adjustments to fit the changing needs of your aging body.

Q. How do the nutrition and probiotic benefits of kefir compare with those of Greek yogurt?

If it's important to get enough vitamin D, is getting more even better? Probably not, experts are now cautioning. Hopes that extra doses of the "sunshine vitamin" might benefit a wide range of health conditions have been eclipsed by recent research.

Q. Do raw and cooked spinach provide the same nutritional benefits?

Q. Is it possible to get an overdose of vitamin A from eating carrots?

Q. If you sit in front of a window with sunlight coming through, will your body produce vitamin D or do you have to be outdoors with direct sunlight?

Q. Its been recommended that I take vitamins for my eyes to help prevent age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Are all supplements labeled "AREDS2 formula" the same? Can you offer any guidance on selecting the best supplement?