The adult vitamin and mineral supplement maze.

OBJECTIVE: The content and daily cost of 14 popular multi-vitamin/ multi-mineral (MVMM) supplements promoted for adults 50 years of age or older in the United States were compared in order to provide pharmacists with objective information, enabling them to make more informed recommendations for these products. DATA SOURCES: The labeled ingredients for MVMM products contained on Drug Topic's "Top 200" over-the-counter product list and for several other popular brands were compared with the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) recommendations for the Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) of micronutrients. DATA SYNTHESIS: DRIs for micronutrients are generally the same for adults between ages 31 to 70. However, vitamin B6, vitamin D, and calcium have increased daily DRIs for adults 50 years of age or older, and the DRI for vitamin D for those 70 years of age and older is higher. All products reviewed met IOM's recommendations for vitamin B6 and vitamin D for individuals 70 years of age or older. No product contained the daily DRI for calcium, particularly products designed for men. The cost and number of tablets per daily dose for MVMM varies and may affect product selection. CONCLUSIONS: The most significant difference among MVMM products is the calcium content. IOM's recommendations for calcium are the same for both genders 50 years of age or older, but products developed for men contain very low amounts of calcium compared with products for women. Individuals who have a low dietary intake of vitamin D and calcium should take additional supplements with a daily MVMM. Formulations change frequently, and pharmacists should read labeling before making any specific product recommendations.

Dietary supplement use among academic pharmacists

United States sales of dietary supplements exceeded $18 billion in 2002, indicating that dietary supplement use is common among the American public. This report describes a survey of academic pharmacists and their use of dietary supplements and herbs. To date, most data comes from retail or community pharmacists, so a survey was developed to collect information regarding dietary supplement and herb usage from academic pharmacists. Academic pharmacists are probably the most knowledgeable group in regards to assessing the clinical value of supplements. Our results showed that 54% of academic pharmacists have used dietary supplements or herbs. However, it is interesting to note that most of the dietary supplements listed were not in the top ten most commonly used supplements. In addition, there was no excessive use of supplements or herbs by this group of pharmacists since the majority of respondents listed multivitamins (AU)

Las ventas en Estados Unidos de suplementos dietéticos superan los 18.000 millones de dólares, lo que indica que el use de suplementos dietéticas es común entre el público americano. Este informe describe una encuesta a farmacéuticos académicos y su uso de suplementos dietéticas y plantas medicinales. Hasta la fecha, la mayoría de los datos vienen de farmacias comunitarias o de detallistas, por lo que se desarrolló una encuesta para recoger información sobre el uso de suplementos dietéticas y plantas medicinales por los farmacéuticos académicos. Los farmacéuticos académicos son probablemente el grupo más reconocido para evaluar el valor clínico de los suplementos. Nuestros resultados muestran que el 54% de los farmacéuticos académicos ha usado suplementos dietéticos o plantas medicinales. Sin embargo, es interesante referir que la mayoría de los suplementos dietéticas listados no aparecen entre los 10 más comúnmente utilizados. Además, no hubo excesiva utilización de suplementos o plantas medicinales en este grupo de farmacéuticos ya que la mayoría de los respondentes relató multi-vitamínicos (AU)

Dietary supplement use among academic pharmacists.

United States sales of dietary supplements exceeded $18 billion in 2002, indicating that dietary supplement use is common among the American public. This report describes a survey of academic pharmacists and their use of dietary supplements and herbs. To date, most data comes from retail or community pharmacists, so a survey was developed to collect information regarding dietary supplement and herb usage from academic pharmacists. Academic pharmacists are probably the most knowledgeable group in regards to assessing the clinical value of supplements. Our results showed that 54% of academic pharmacists have used dietary supplements or herbs. However, it is interesting to note that most of the dietary supplements listed were not in the top ten most commonly used supplements. In addition, there was no excessive use of supplements or herbs by this group of pharmacists since the majority of respondents listed multivitamins.