title: [Dietary supplements--evaluation of patient inquiries at a drug information service].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dietary supplements are a product group of foods, which are meant to supplement the general nutrition with micronutrients and other substances. They are widely used in Germany. We evaluated the frequency of their use and of information requirements concerning dietary supplements in patients who contacted the independent drug information service at TU Dresden.
  
  
  METHODS
  All inquiries from 2008 to 2010 were evaluated regarding information requirement about dietary supplements, the kind of products used and characteristics of patients using supplements. Sociodemographic characteristics, kind and number of drugs and dietary supplements as well as underlying diseases were recorded from the inquiring patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  23.3 % of persons looking for advice used dietary supplements. The most frequently used product groups included vitamins and minerals (52.5 %) as well as plant extracts (14.0 %). Information requirements were especially high for plant extracts and for products containing glucosamine/chondroitin and lutein/zeaxanthin. Users of dietary supplements were exposed to a higher number of different products than non-users.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Information requirements were primarily detected for products without clearly proven benefits or for supplements which are advertised to relieve certain diseases or symptoms although the product characteristics do not support such utilization. The frequency of use of dietary supplements among patients which already receive multiple medications substantiates the necessity to include dietary supplements in assessments of drug interactions and to scrutinize indications for supplement use.
authors.affiliation: Arzneimittelberatungsdienst der Unabhängigen Patientenberatung Deutschland (UPD) am Institut für Klinische Pharmakologie, Medizinische Fakultät der TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany. lisa.goltz@mailbox.tu-dresden.de
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Goltz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schröder
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kirch
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D008192:Deception; D019587:Dietary Supplements / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004346:Drug Information Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004347:Drug Interactions; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018977:Micronutrients / Q000009:adverse effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D018977:Micronutrients