Vitamin Shoppe: US supplement user confidence soars to 93% as usage increases

17-May-2012 - Last updated on 18-May-2012 at 19:12 GMT

The Vitamin Shoppe "America's View on Vitamins" survey data was obtained from 1,000 US adults

Taking dietary supplements can boost confidence about health, according to The Vitamin Shoppe's annual survey, with usage up to 63% of the US population.

Survey data indicated that 93% of vitamin users are more confident about their health when taking dietary supplements, a 21% increase from 2011. The survey, conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of The Vitamin Shoppe, also found that 72% of respondents report taking a multivitamin supplement on a regular basis.

After multivitamins, the top supplements used were vitamin D (51%), vitamin C (49%), calcium (43%), B vitamins (42%), and fish oil (40%).

"It's difficult for most people to consume the recommended daily servings of fresh fruits and vegetables, especially while juggling work and family," said Sharon Richter, a Registered Dietician based in New York City. "These findings reaffirm how important many feel it is to maintain a vitamin or supplement regimen to ensure your body is getting all the nutrients needed on a daily basis."

Supporting data

The Vitamin Shoppe’s data echoes findings from other surveys, including the Council for Responsible Nutrition’s (CRN) recent survey which found that supplements use among US adults has increased to a record level of 69%.

As with the Vitamin Shoppe survey, CRN also found that multivitamins are the most popular form of supplement, with 71% of users reporting taking a multivitamin, with 53% saying they take it daily.

Commenting on the Vitamin Shoppe data, Judy Blatman, senior vice president, communications, CRN, told NutraIngredients-USA: “This survey and CRN’s most recent survey on consumers and dietary supplements shared some common ground in findings. For example, our survey also found that usage went up, to over two-thirds of American adults reporting they take supplements.

“In addition, both our survey and The Vitamin Shoppe survey reinforced an increase in different aspects of consumer confidence in supplements. In terms of what’s most popular, there were also similarities between the surveys, including the multivitamin being number one, and letter vitamins, calcium, and fish oil in the top ten.

“I’m always intrigued to see other survey results that identify information about the supplement consumer, and it’s encouraging to learn from The Vitamin Shoppe survey that parents are passing on healthy habits to their kids, including taking a vitamin regularly,” added Blatman.

Passing on healthy habits

The Vitamin Shoppe "America's View on Vitamins" survey data also revealed that parents are passing on healthy habits to their kids, with 54% giving their children a regular vitamin and/or supplement.

Efforts to build the science behind vitamins and their impact on health also appeared to be influencing consumer behavior, with 66% of respondents agreeing that they were influenced in some way by such studies.

The survey data was obtained from 1,000 US adults.