Efficacy and safety of dietary supplement use in the primary prevention of chronic disease in the general non-pregnant United States adult population

摘要

The use of dietary supplements has grown rapidly over the past several decades, and are now used by more than half of the adult population in the United States (US).¹ In 1994, the Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act (DSHEA) significantly changed the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) role in regulating supplement labelling. According to the DSHEA dietary supplements may contain products taken by mouth including vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, other dietary substances, or combinations or extracts of any of these ‘dietary ingredients.’ The DSHEA reaffirmed that dietary supplements are to be regulated as foods and not as drugs. Annual sales of supplements to Americans are now reported at about $23 billion, a substantial share of which is spent on vitamins and minerals.