STUDY INDICATES
BY THOMAS CROCKER
MOST NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS
AND DIETARY THERAPIES DO NOT BENEFIT
HEART HEALTH, DESPITE POPULARITY
NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS AND DIE TARY INTERVENTIONS ENJOY WIDESPRE AD USE IN THE UNITED
STATES, BUT MOST HAVE NO EFFECT ON CARDIOVA SCUL AR SURVIVAL OR OUTCOMES, ACCORDING TO A
GROUP OF U.S. RESE ARCHERS.
MORE THAN HALF of American adults
use at least one dieta r y supplement,
according to a 2016 study published in
JAMA, and that figure is even higher
among older adults — a 2017 study in
The Journal of Nutrition found that 70%
of individuals ages 60 and older use at least
one supplement, and nearly 1 in 3 use four
or more supplements. These products are
part of a multibillion-dollar industry that
is subject to scant regulation.
"I am not sure patients — or even all
hea lthca re prov iders — rea lize that
manufacturers of dietary supplements
do not need FDA approval before produc-
ing or selling dietary supplements," says
Erin Michos, MD, MHS, FACC, FAHA,
Associate Professor of Medicine and
Epidemiology and Associate Director of
Preventive Cardiology at the Ciccarone
Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease,
Division of Cardiology, Johns Hopkins
Medicine. "Notably, dietary supplements
are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure or
alleviate the effects of diseases. However,
many patients specifically take them … to
improve their health."
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