ABSTRACT
Background:
A
dietary supplement is a product that aims to add
nutritional value to the
diet.
University students are known to make use of
dietary supplements to improve their
academic performance, increase energy levels and promote overall
general health. Based on assumption,
students studying towards a
nutrition-related degree may eat healthily and choose not to use
dietary supplements. Alternatively, because of their interest in and exposure to
nutrition, they may decide to use
dietary supplements. However, there is a lack of published studies investigating the
prevalence of
dietary supplement use and reasons for use among South African
university students studying towards a
nutrition-related degree.
Aim:
The aim of this study was to assess the use of
dietary supplements by
dietetics students.
Setting:
University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN).
Methods:
A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted using a
self-administered
questionnaire.
Results:
Of the 139 participants, 23% (n = 32) used
dietary supplements. There was a greater use by
female students, those
who lived at home and those registered for the Postgraduate Diploma in
Dietetics. Reasons for using
dietary supplements included the following to strengthen the
immune system (62.5%), to improve energy levels (56.3%) and to enhance physical
health (50%).
Cost (32.7%; n = 35), an adequate
diet (22.4%; n = 24) and not necessary or waste of money (15%; n = 16) were reasons for not using
dietary supplements. Most
students (84.4%) made use of a multivitamin and
mineral supplement.
Conclusion:
There was a low
prevalence of
dietary supplement use by UKZN
dietetics students, with the high
cost of supplements given as the main reason for non-use
