Dietary supplement and food intake in women of childbearing age.
The relationship between dietary adequacy and supplement use was examined in 3,227 nonpregnant women aged 15 to 41 years from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Twenty-five percent of the women used dietary supplements regularly; 67% of them consumed some form of multivitamin. Supplement users had a higher income and education, were more often white, had a leaner body composition, and were more likely to reside in the western United States than nonusers. Caloric intake of users and non-users was similar. However, independent of the supplements, the diets of supplement users contained significantly more dietary protein, phosphorus, iron, potassium, thiamin, and niacin than the diets of non-users. A considerable portion of both users and non-users had dietary intakes of less than 50% of the Recommended Dietary Allowances for calcium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C; however, a significantly greater proportion of supplement non-users had low intakes of iron and vitamin C. Supplement users generally consumed a more nutrient-dense diet and may be the individuals who least need supplements.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet; D004034:Diet Surveys; D004522:Educational Status; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005527:Food, Fortified; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D014481:United States