Medical experts advocate the use of vitamin and mineral supplements to help fight infections. A study undertaken by researchers at Memorial University (reported in the British journal The Lancet, November 1992) recruited 96 men and women age 65 and older. One-half of them received daily supplements of vitamins and minerals, whereas the other half received placebos. The supplements contained the daily recommended amounts of 18 vitamins and minerals, including vitamins B-6, B-12, C, and D, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, calcium, copper, iodine, iron, selenium, magnesium, and zinc. 

The doses of vitamins A and E were slightly less than the daily requirements. The supplements included four times the amount of beta-carotene than the average person ingests daily. The number of days of illness from infections (ranging from colds to pneumonia) was recorded for each person. Can we infer that taking vitamin and mineral supplements daily increases the body’s immune system?