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Vitamin Supplement Intake Is Related to Dietary Intake and Physical Activity: The Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health (CATCH)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2006.09.001Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

To explore the relationship of multiple-vitamin supplement use with selected food groups, physical activity, lifestyle behaviors, and weight status.

Subjects and Methods

Two thousand seven hundred sixty-one adolescents in the 12th grade who participated in the fourth Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health study had height and weight measured and completed health behavior survey and food frequency questionnaires. Logistic regression models were used to determine the likelihood of supplement use with health and activity behaviors and dietary intake.

Results

Prevalence of multiple-vitamin supplement use among adolescents was 25% and varied by sex and race/ethnicity. Supplement users had higher mean daily intakes of most food groups, but lower intakes of total fat and saturated fat than nonusers. Higher food index scores were positively associated with the likelihood of using multiple-vitamin supplements. Supplement users were more likely to be physically active, participate in team and organized sports, and less likely to be overweight and to watch more than an hour of television per day.

Conclusions

Adolescents who use multiple vitamin supplements have more healthful dietary and lifestyle behaviors than nonusers. Further study on supplement use by adolescents, including other types of supplements used and reasons for use, is warranted.

Section snippets

Study Population

The CATCH study was a multicenter intervention that evaluated the effectiveness of an elementary school-based cardiovascular health promotion program. The study enrolled 5,106 ethnically diverse students in grades three through five at 56 intervention and 40 control schools in California, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Texas from 1991 to 1994 (13). Follow-up surveys were conducted in years 1996-1997 (14) and 2000-2001 (15), when students were in grades eight and 12, respectively.

For these analyses

Results

Among the 2,761 adolescents who participated in the CATCH 2000-2001 study, 25% were multiple-vitamin supplement users. The average age for supplement users and nonusers was 18.2±0.5 and 18.3±0.5 years, respectively. Among multiple-vitamin supplement users, 58% were female. A larger proportion of multiple-vitamin supplement users were white (79%); approximately 10% were African American, 8% were Hispanic, and the rest belonged to other ethnic groups. Supplement use varied by sex, race/ethnic

Discussion

The prevalence of multiple-vitamin supplement use was 25% among adolescents enrolled in the large, multiethnic CATCH study. Compared with nonusers, supplement users had more healthful nutrient intakes of dietary fiber, saturated fat, and cholesterol as reflected in their more healthful eating patterns, which included higher intakes of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fish, and seafood, and higher overall food index scores. Supplement users also were engaged in more healthful lifestyle habits,

Conclusions

One in four adolescents reported using multiple-vitamin supplements, although the prevalence varied by race, sex, dietary intake, and health behaviors. Compared with nonusers, supplement users consumed more healthful diets, watched less television, were more physically active, and had a more healthful weight status. Adolescents may benefit from taking vitamin/mineral supplements to augment dietary intakes that are inadequate, but because they are concentrated sources of nutrients it is

L. Reaves is a graduate student, L. M. Steffen is an assistant professor of Epidemiology, and L. A. Lytle is a professor of Epidemiology, the University of Minneapolis School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, Minneapolis.

References (19)

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L. Reaves is a graduate student, L. M. Steffen is an assistant professor of Epidemiology, and L. A. Lytle is a professor of Epidemiology, the University of Minneapolis School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, Minneapolis.

J. T. Dwyer is a professor of Nutrition, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and Medical School, Tufts University, and New England Medical Center Hospital, Boston, MA.

L. S. Webber is professor of Biostatistics, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Department of Biostatistics, New Orleans, LA.

H. A. Feldman is lead biostatistician and associate professor, Clinical Research Program and Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Children’s Hospital Boston and Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; at the time of the study, he was with the New England Research Institute, Watertown, MA.

S. K. Osganian is director, Clinical Research Program, Children’s Hospital, Boston and assistant professor of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; at the time of the study, she was also with the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester.

D. M. Hoelscher is an associate professor in Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, and director, Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living, University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston.

M. M. Zive is a registered dietitian, the University of California-San Diego.

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