More Americans are relying on dietary supplements such as fish oil, a nationwide survey shows, despite inconclusive evidence of their benefits and some high-profile controversy.
The National Institutes of Health found that 18.5 percent of U.S. adults — that’s about one adult in five — take supplements other than vitamins or minerals as a way to complement their health.
Fish oil/omega 3 fatty acids remains the most popular natural product, used by 19 million adults and 664,000 children. The survey found nearly 8 million more adults and 270,000 more children started using the supplement in 2012 compared to 2007.
The spike is in spite of a lack of evidence that fish oil helps prevent heart disease or slows progression of the eye condition age-related macular degeneration, NIH said. The jury is also still out on whether it can help with symptoms of depression or relieve inflammation from arthritis.
The quality and benefits of dietary supplements have received heightened scrutiny recently.
Last week, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman demanded GNC, Target and Walmart pull several store-brand herbal supplements from the shelves in the state after tests revealed they did not include correct ingredients. Affected supplements included store brands of ginseng, echinacea, ginkgo biloba, garlic supplements and St. John’s wort.
Last year, a Senate panel grilled television personality Dr. Mehmet Oz for promoting dubious weight-loss supplements.
The survey results were culled from 2012 data from about 90,000 American adults and 17,000 interviews with a knowledgeable adult about children ages 4-17, according to NIH, which performs the survey every five years.
This story originally published at 5:46 p.m. and has been updated since then.
