Vitamin C and the risk of developing inflammatory polyarthritis: prospective nested case-control study.

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Ann Rheum Dis. 2004 Jul;63(7):843-7.

Vitamin C and the risk of developing inflammatory polyarthritis:

prospective nested case-control study.

Pattison DJ, Silman AJ, Goodson NJ, Lunt M, Bunn D, Luben R, Welch A,

Bingham S, Khaw KT, Day N, Symmons DP.

Arthritis Research Campaign, Epidemiology Unit, University of

Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether, there is an association between

consumption of fruit and vegetables and dietary antioxidants and the risk of

developing inflammatory polyarthritis (IP). METHODS: In a prospective,

population based, nested case-control study of residents of Norfolk, UK, men

and women aged 45-74 years were recruited, between 1993 and 1997 through

general practice age-sex registers to the Norfolk arm of the European

Prospective Investigation of Cancer (EPIC-Norfolk). Dietary intake was

assessed at baseline using 7 day diet diaries. Seventy three participants

who went on to develop IP between 1993 and 2001 and were registered by the

Norfolk Arthritis Register (NOAR) were identified. Incident cases of IP,

assessed by general practitioners, fulfilled the criteria of two or more

swollen joints, persisting for a minimum of 4 weeks. Each case of IP was

matched for age and sex with two controls free of IP. RESULTS: Lower intakes

of fruit and vegetables, and vitamin C were associated with an increased

risk of developing IP. Those in the lowest category of vitamin C intake,

compared with the highest, increased their risk of developing IP more than

threefold, adjusted odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) 3.3

(95% CI 1.4 to 7.9). Weak inverse associations between vitamin E and

beta-carotene intake and IP risk were found. CONCLUSION: Patients with IP

(cases) consumed less fruit and vitamin C than matched controls, which

appeared to increase their risk of developing IP. The mechanism for this

effect is uncertain. Thus similar studies are necessary to confirm these

results.

PMID: 15194581 [PubMed - in process]