Dietary supplement use among the elderly seems to be on the rise. As older adults continue to consume vitamins and minerals, it is imperative that the reasons for the increased use of these products as well as the effectiveness of these supplements are identified. This small-scale explanatory study aims to provide insight into the attitudes, beliefs and motivations of vitamin/mineral supplement use among the elderly.
DickinsonA. (2002) ‘Optimal Nutrition for Good Health: The Benefits of Nutritional Supplements’, Council for Responsible Nutrition website, www.crnusa.org00benefits_toc.html (Accessed: 25 May 2005).
2.
WeddleD.Fanelli-KuczmarskiM. (2000) ‘Position of the American Dietetic Association: Nutrition, ageing, and the continuum of care’, Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 100(5), 580–594.
3.
GastonN.W.MardisA.GerriorS.SahyounN.AnandR. (1999) ‘A focus on nutrition for the elderly: It's time to take a closer look’, Insight, July, 14.
4.
Ibid..
5.
Dickinson (2002) op. cit..
6.
MitchellB.L.UlrichC.McTiernanA. (2003) ‘Supplementation with vitamins or minerals and immune function: Can the elderly benefit?’, Nutrition Research, 23(8), 1117.
HamB. (2003) ‘Elderly dietary supplement users may not need them’, Center for the Advancement of Health, www.cfah.org/hbns/news/elderly01–14–03.cfm (Accessed: 25 May 2005).
12.
NeuhouserM.PattersonR.LevyL. (1999) ‘Motivations for using vitamin and mineral supplements’, Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 99(7), 851–854.
KaufmanD.W.KellyJ.RosenbergL.AndersonT.MitchellA. (2002) ‘Recent patterns of medication use in the ambulatory adult population of the United States: The Slone Survey’, Journal of the American Medical Association, 287(3), 337–344.
FletcherR. (2002) ‘Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: Clinical applications’, Journal of the American Medical Association, 287(23), 3127–3130.
CotugnaN. (1989a) ‘Predictors of nutrition supplement use in the elderly, Part I: A review of the literature’, Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly, 8(3/4), 3–13.
30.
CotugnaN. (1989b) ‘Predictors of nutrition supplement use in the elderly, Part II: The role of beliefs, attitude, subjective norm and intention’, Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly, 8(3/4), 15–33.
31.
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (n.d.) op. cit..
HoltG.A.ChandraA. (2002) ‘Herbs in the modern healthcare environment - An overview of uses, legalities, and the role of the healthcare professional’, Clinical Research and Regulatory Affairs, 19(1), 83–107.