Half of US adults take vitamins, supplements routinely

Research this week indicated vitamins do not provide health benefits, but a U.S. survey conducted earlier in the month shows half of Americans takes vitamins. A Gallup poll conducted earlier this month shows half of Americans report regularly taking vitamins or other mineral supplements, but there is a significant generation gap between those who use vitamins and those who do not. About a third of 18- to 29-year-olds say they regularly take vitamins or mineral supplements. Vitamin use increases among older U.S. adults, with regular use climbing higher than 50 percent in the 50-64 age group and continuing upward to encompass a solid majority of seniors at 68 percent. Forty-three percent of those with no more than a high school education said they take vitamins regularly, but vitamin use steadily increases with college experience. A majority of those making less than $24,000 per year do not take vitamins, but a majority of all other income categories take vitamins, topping out at 56 percent for those whose household income is $90,000 or more per year. Fifty-four percent of women say they take vitamins or mineral supplements regularly, versus 46 percent of men. Factors that may contribute to the disparity include women taking more prenatal vitamins or calcium supplements for those who suffer from osteoporosis, Gallup says. The telephone poll of 2,023 U.S. adults was conducted Dec. 6-9 and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.