Herbal and vitamin/mineral supplement use by retirement community residents: preliminary findings

A survey questionnaire assessed supplement use by free-living residents of a retirement community. Of the 318 respondents (mean age 82.2 years), 20% of women and 20% of men reported using herbal supplements, with 62% of these using them at least once per week. Most herbal supplements users (97%) also used vitamin/mineral supplements. Sixty-eight percent of herbal supplement users felt very much/somewhat informed about taking the supplements. Forty-four percent, however, were not sure whether there was testing before marketing; 33% were not sure about side effects. Half (52%) relied "very much/somewhat" on doctors/nurses as information sources; 40% relied on dietitians.