Longitudinal trends in use of dietary supplements by US Army personnel differ from those of civilians

Prevalence and patterns of dietary supplement (DS) use by U.S. Army Soldiers differ from the civilian population. Longitudinal trends in use of DS by civilians have been examined, but are unavailable in subpopulations such as military service members. The present study examined longitudinal changes in DS use by Soldiers. A standardized questionnaire on DS use was administered in 2006-07 (n=989) and 2010-11 (n=1196) to a convenience sample of active duty Soldiers. Data were weighted for total population demographics of age, sex, and rank. Regular use of DS by Soldiers increased significantly (56% + 1.6 vs. 64% + 1.7; p ≤.001) over the 4 years primarily due to increase DS use among the youngest 18-24 year old soldiers (43.0% ± 2.5 vs 62.3% ± 2.4; p≤.01). Protein (22% + 1.4 vs. 26% + 1.5; p ≤.001) and combination (10.0% + 1.0 vs. 24% + 1.4; p ≤.001) product consumption also increased over the 4 years. Individual vitamin and mineral use, including iron, magnesium, selenium, Vitamins A, B6, B12, and D, also significantly increased (p≤.05). In addition, expenditures on DS by Soldiers increased over time (pThe accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author