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Americans spent an estimated $15.7 billion on dietary supplements in 2000, but the appropriate use of these products, the need for their regulation, and their effectiveness are highly controversial with both patients and physicians. Researchers combined data from 6 public opinion surveys; they analyzed the responses of 1196 people, including 235 "regular" (19.6 percent), 381 "sometime" (31.9 percent), and 580 "never" (48.5 percent) users of dietary supplements.
Regular supplement users reported a higher level of education and were more likely to be white, older than 45 years, or uninsured. Supplements were thought to be helpful for patients with colds, arthritis, depression, or influenza by half of respondents; with cancer by a third; and wi…