Vitamins and Vitamin Supplements: Use Increases in America
Half of All Americans Take Vitamins and Supplements in
Survey
By Mikaela Conley
Do you take vitamins every morning? The numbers are growing. A new
government study found that more than half of American adults take at least one
dietary supplement. But despite their popularity, many experts remain skeptical
of their effects.
"Although we were not surprised, it is interesting to note that
not only did supplemental calcium use and vitamin D use increase for all women
aged 60 and over from 1988 to 1994 to 1999 to 2002, but there was also an
increase from [between] 1999 [and] 2002 to 2003 to 2006," said Jaime
Gahche, a nutritional researcher with the National Center for Health Statistics
and lead author of the study.
Supplements can contain high amounts of specific nutrients, and are often
used to increase nutrition in a person's diet. They are not regulated by the
Food and Drug Administration.
Because so many Americans use vitamin supplements, researchers hoped to
assess people's use of them in order to get an accurate picture of the
population's dietary intake.
The study, sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics, found that
more than 40 percent of Americans used supplements from 1988 to 1994, and more
than one half took vitamins from 2003 to 2006. Multivitamins were found to be
the most commonly used supplement.
Of particular interest to the researchers were vitamin D, calcium and
folic acid supplements.
Too Much Hype?
ABC News contacted several experts on the subject. While none was surprised
by the increased 
use of vitamins, nearly all of them agreed that a healthy diet
is a better alternative to nutrients in pill form.
"People are looking for help with what they believe is a problem but
trying to solve it the wrong way," said Dr. Darwin Deen, clinical
professor in the department of family and social medicine at Albert Einstein
College of Medicine in New York.
"Our diet contains too many processed foods that do not have the nutrients
we need to keep us healthy -- soda and chips -- so people respond by taking
vitamins."
Deen said he usually advises his patients to increase their intake of fruits
and vegetables to boost their vitamin count, rather than take a pill.
"The pill is a nice idea, but we have no reason to think this
one-size-fits-all dose makes any sense for each individual," said Deen.
Lead author Gahche said the report makes no recommendations on whether or
not a person should or should not use dietary supplements. And if individuals
are taking supplements, they should be sure to the tell their doctors what
those are and why they're taking them.
"There probably is a perception among the population that taking a
dietary supplement is an easy way to obtain necessary nutrients and improve
health, but this isn't necessarily true," said Dr. Donald Hensrud,
associate professor of preventive medicine and nutrition at Mayo Clinic.
"For most dietary supplements there is not a lot of evidence they improve
health, including multivitamins.
"There is also some data that, in general, the people who take dietary
supplements are least likely to need them… they already have a good diet."
Vitamins and Supplements: Fruits and Vegetables Better
Doctors have studied the effects of vitamin D on a variety of health
conditions, including cholesterol, heart disease, influenza, breast cancer and
osteoporosis, just to name a few.
The vitamin is important to the body as it aids in the absorption of
calcium, which in turn helps to form and maintain healthy bones. And the report
found that supplemental calcium increased from 28 percent to 61 percent among
women aged 60 and older in the past two decades.
"Too many people are taking calcium to prevent osteoporosis but not
paying attention to their vitamin D status," said Deen. "Without
adequate vitamin D, you do not absorb your calcium supplement, making it a
waste of money."
Natural sources of vitamin D include fatty fish, eggs, mushrooms exposed to
sunlight, cod liver oil and ultraviolet rays from the sun. Many doctors
recommend 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure per day to prevent vitamin D
deficiency.
Vitamin D Deficiency Leads to Disease
A deficiency of the vitamin causes rickets in children and a softening of
the bones and osteoporosis in adults.
"Vitamin D and calcium [supplements] are the flavors of the month and
it's the impulsive nature of our society to get that quick fix instead of
getting back to eating whole foods," said Dr. Stephen Cook of University
of Rochester Medical Center in New
York.
As a pediatrician in upstate New
York, Cook said many people in the area likely have
low levels of vitamin D, but even then, Cook said he's not sold on supplements.
"There is a good chance we all have low levels of vitamin D [in
upstate New York],
but if you live healthily and get two or three servings of low-fat dairy each
day, you're probably going to get enough."
And even for children suffering from rickets, Cook said there is a large
debate in pediatrics as to the benefits of giving them vitamin D supplements.
"The short-term approach is to supplement them, but really, we should
say, 'no, make sure they're drinking enough milk,'" said Cook.
Folic Acid for Mother and Baby Health
Folate has been proven to prevent neural tube effects and pregnancy
complications. Doctors recommend that women who are pregnant or trying to get
pregnant take prenatal supplements that include high doses of folic acid. They
may not be able to get enough from leafy green vegetables, beans, egg yolks and
fortified grains.
In the study, folic acid supplement use has not increased in more than two
decades, and white women were more likely to take the vitamins than black and
Hispanic women were.
"It is unfortunate that folic acid use among young women has not
increased and is still relatively low, particularly among minorities,"
said Hensrud. "Folic acid to prevent neural tube defects is one of the
more beneficial examples of dietary supplements."
How to Get Your Vitamin Fix
Lead author Gahche advised consumers to visit the National Institutes of
Health's Office of Dietary 
Supplements website, which contains valuable and
reliable information to strengthen knowledge and understanding of dietary
supplements.
"People should realize the evidence supporting a health supporting diet
is magnitudes greater than the evidence supporting dietary supplements,"
said Hensrud. "And eating a healthy diet can be enjoyable and taste a lot
better."
April 13, 2011
http://abcnews.go.com/