Diabetics with kidney damage who take vitamin B to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke actually increase their risk, in addition to causing more damage to kidney function.
A new study published in the Journal of American Medical Association clearly shows an increased risk of heart attack and stroke in diabetics who take vitamin B. Researchers therefore want to warn people of the dangers.
238 diabetics with renal failure participated in the research. 50% received a high dose of vitamin B and the other half a placebo.
After a 36-month follow up, those taking vitamin B had a higher rate of problems. 8 people had a heart attack compared to 4 in the group that took the placebo. In regards to strokes, six people in the first group had one and only one person in the second person.
In addition, those taking vitamin B saw their kidney function reduce as well.
Dr. David Spence is director of Robarts’ Research Institute’s Stroke Prevention and Atherosclerosis Research Centre. He says, "People with renal failure shouldn’t be using these high doses of vitamins and we need to be looking into alternatives. People tend to think vitamins are innocuous, but we’ve known for ages that high doses of vitamins can be harmful."