We are all no strangers to vitamins. Vitamins are an essential element of health for each of us. When the human body is deficient in vitamins, the corresponding metabolic reactions will be problematic, resulting in vitamin deficiency. Vitamin deficiency will make our body metabolism out of balance, immunity will be reduced, and various diseases and viruses will take advantage of the situation, for example, people who lack vitamin D are prone to heart disease and stroke. But too much vitamin in the body also can not. Recently, a new study by the Intermountain Medical Heart Center in Salt Lake City, U.S., showed that the body vitamin D levels higher than normal. Heartbeat rhythm will be accelerated, the incidence of atrial fibrillation will be higher. As mentioned above, the vitamin is found in tiny amounts in the body, but it does not play a small role. Scientists have also been studying and exploring the role of vitamins in the human body. At the end of 2011, let’s take a look at a few representative examples of what scientists have discovered about our common vitamins over the past year. Vitamin A has the activity to activate the orphan nuclear receptor TR4 Vitamin A, known as retinol, was the first type of vitamin to occur in humans. Scientists from the Van Andel Research Institute (VARI), after analyzing the structure and function of an orphan nuclear receptor TR4, found that vitamin A may play a more direct role than originally thought in certain physiological functions of the body, including sperm cell formation and central nervous system development. This research was selected as the “cover story” and published in the prestigious Journal of Biological Chemistry. Plos ONE: Vitamin B may fight Alzheimer’s disease Scientists at the University of Oxford in the UK conducted a comparative clinical trial of 168 older adults with mild cognitive impairment over a 2-year period and found that high doses of vitamin B daily controlled concentrations of homocysteine, which accelerates brain shrinkage, slowing the rate of brain shrinkage by half, thereby delaying the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The research results were published in the journal Public Library of Science General. U.S. scientists found that vitamin C has special effects on the eyes and brain Scientists at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) found that the retina needs to be “bathed” in a high dose of vitamin C in order to function properly. In addition, vitamin C stays in the brain the longest in the human body. Researchers believe that retinal cells are the most readily available cells that are identical to brain cells. The retina is part of the central nervous system, and it can be inferred that vitamin C is equally important to the brain. Fourth, those with less vitamin D intake have a higher risk of bowel cancer Researchers from the Department of General Surgery of the Sixth People’s Hospital of Shanghai, affiliated with the School of Medicine of Shanghai Jiaotong University, systematically reviewed 18 prospective clinical studies containing a total of 1 million cases, and found that people with higher vitamin D intake have a lower probability of developing colorectal cancer. Those with lower vitamin D intake had a 67% increased incidence of colorectal cancer. The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Oncology. V. JAMA: Heavy vitamin E supplementation increases risk of prostate cancer U.S. researchers found that men taking heavy daily vitamin E supplementation may increase the risk of prostate cancer. In the experiment, researchers recruited 35,000 men and used a double-blind test method to randomize the study subjects into an experimental and control group, with the experimental group taking a dietary supplement and the control group taking a placebo. The results showed that after 4 years, the study subjects who took 400 mg of vitamin E daily were 17% more likely to develop prostate cancer. Am. J Epidemiol.: Multivitamins do not prevent heart disease and cancer Many people think that taking multivitamins can prevent disease. But in a U.S. study involving 180,000 people over 11 years, scientists found that cancer and heart disease patients who took multivitamins died in the same numbers as those who did not take the supplements. Overall, multivitamins did not seem to protect people from cancers including lung, colon, rectal, prostate and breast cancers.