Supplemental Use Goes Mainstream

Even I was surprised by this statistic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Half of the U.S. population is using supplements. The supplements include vitamins, herbs and minerals.

An article on CNN reports that use of calcium, vitamin D and folic acid has risen in the past few years with 61% of women over the age of 60 take calcium, compared with only 28% in 1988-1994. Also, 56% of women in that age group take vitamin D supplements, compared with only 30% in 1988-1994.

The article quotes Dr. Orly Avitzur, medical adviser for Consumer Reports as saying that while supplements are important it is not a substitute for eating well. "It's a Band-Aid approach to think you can eat poorly and just take a vitamin and you'll be equal to another person who eats well and exercises and takes care of their health and gets regular checkups. There's no substitute for a healthy lifestyle."

And my holistic MD, David Brownstein would whole-heartedly agree with that.