Do you need really need to take supplements? A new option...

Mention dietary supplements to most doctors and you usually get a dismissive answer along the lines that a varied diet gives you all the nutrients you need. That may be changing, however, with a realisation among some leading medical scientists that supplements have a place. This is partly because even the best diet may not fulfil all our nutritional needs and also because research now shows that specific combinations of nutrients support different organs of the body. Gastroenterologist Professor Martyn Caplin of the Royal Free Hospital in London, who also treats cancer patients, has developed an evidence-based range of food supplements called ProfBiotics, offering five targeted combinations of herbs, vitamins and minerals to support the breast, prostate, pancreas, bowel and liver. Others are in development.

The impetus came from patients on both his gastroenterology and oncology lists. ‘My patients kept telling me they took all these vitamin and herbal products and asking which were best. I didn’t have a clue. But since they would take them anyway I thought it was my job to be able to say something reasonably intelligent.’

So Professor Caplin and members of his team researched the evidence for curcumin (the most active part of turmeric) and green tea, which have both been used in traditional medicine for millennia, nutrients such as vitamins D3, E and lycopene from tomatoes, and minerals including zinc. The team found compelling evidence that different nutrients could reduce the risk of disease. Subsequently, they published various papers in peer-reviewed journals, which triggered investors to set up ProfBiotics.

While the evidence behind the supplements is strong, Professor Caplin emphasises that the most important thing is to eat well, so there are diet sheets for different risks on the website. ‘Ten to 40 per cent of cancers are now thought to be diet-related. If we could get people to improve their diet it would be phenomenal.’

ProfBiotics products may help people who have been diagnosed with cancer and are going through treatment (please check with your doctor first), those with an increased risk such as a positive family history or smokers and also healthy people who worry about the high incidence of, say, breast cancer. The formulations may also assist with other conditions. For instance, ProfBiotics Bowel may benefit people suffering from diarrhoea disorders (such as ulcerative colitis) and Liver may aid those with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

To help you decide if a ProfBiotics supplement (from £29.50 for a month’s supply) is for you, there is a questionnaire at www.profbiotics.com.

Most women say they feel more confident when they look their best. Far from being vain, taking care of your appearance conveys how much you value yourself. Over the past two decades my Beauty Bible co-author Jo Fairley and I have heard from thousans of women who – as well as feeling healthy – want to look as lovely as they can, especially as the years pass. That’s a little prelude to telling you that the latest edition of our bestseller The Anti-Ageing Beauty Bible is now on sale. As well as revealing the new cosmetic products (from miracle treatments to concealers via mascara and volumising haircare) that have scored highest with our tester panels of ten women, we give expert advice on the issues we know concern women from 35 to 85 (and on), including skin problems of all sorts, middle-aged spread, how to sleep better, plus tips on being happy – the biggest beautifier of all. We hope you like it.

The Anti-Ageing Beauty Bible, RRP £15.99, is available from Victoria Health for £12.95, www.victoriahealth.com/0800-3898 195.

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK: www.movember.com

Warning: throughout November you may see millions of moustaches sprouting under male noses. It’s all in aid of the Movember Foundation global campaign to raise funds and awareness of men’s health issues, particularly prostate and testicular cancers, poor mental health and the risks of physical inactivity. This year ‘Mo Sistas’ get to join the ‘Mo Bros’ campaign but without getting hairy – just active: walk the walk, run the run… In other words sign up to MOVE every day of MOVEmber!