ODS Update: Recent Developments in Dietary Supplement Science is a monthly newsletter produced by ODS to raise awareness of significant advances in the scientific field of dietary supplements. ODS Update highlights peer-reviewed publications that advance our understanding of the role dietary supplements may have in health optimization. To receive ODS Update: Recent Developments in Dietary Supplement Science, subscribe to the ODS Email List and select “ODS Update Newsletter” as one of your topic choices. Current and past issues are posted here:
The Age-Related Eye Disease Studies (AREDS and AREDS2) were landmark clinical trials sponsored by the NIH National Eye Institute and co-funded by ODS and other NIH institutes and centers. The studies evaluated whether taking specific dietary supplements for five years could prevent the onset of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in older adults or slow the progression of AMD in people who have it. More...
Almost one-third of adults in the United States take a multivitamin/mineral (MVM) supplement, often with the goal of maintaining or improving their overall health, supplementing their nutrient intake, or because they hope to prevent health problems. MVMs do not have a standard or regulatory definition as far as the nutrients or doses they contain. Therefore, MVM products have widely varying compositions, but most contain all or most of the vitamins and minerals that are essential to human health. Some of these vitamins and minerals are recommended for certain people during certain times of life. More...
The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) is a long-term national health study funded by the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute that focuses on strategies to prevent heart disease, breast and colorectal cancer, and osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. Since its inception in 1991, the WHI has made innumerable contributions to the science of women’s health. Recently, researchers published a comprehensive review of the WHI findings and clinical practice implications, along with a paper detailing longer-term outcomes from the WHI calcium and vitamin D trial after a follow-up of over 20 years. More...
National surveys provide valuable data on the use of dietary supplements by the U.S. population. However, they leave a critical gap when it comes to supplement use by subpopulations such as military personnel. Military service members are among the highest users of dietary supplements, and they are more likely than civilians to use products that raise safety concerns, such as those promoted for bodybuilding, performance enhancement, or weight loss. In this issue of ODS Update, we feature a series of publications by Joseph Knapik, Sc.D., Dan Trone, Ph.D., Harris Lieberman, Ph.D., and colleagues from the U.S. Department of Defense that assesses dietary supplement use by service members and associated adverse effects. More...
Scientists evaluate the dietary intake of the U.S. population by estimating the amounts of nutrients people obtain from foods, beverages, and dietary supplements. This research helps identify nutrient shortfalls and can inform public health initiatives to ensure everyone obtains sufficient amounts of essential nutrients to maintain good health. Three recent publications are highlighted that examine factors that affect nutrient intakes of various groups. The publications include an analysis led by ODS Nutritional Epidemiologist Edwina Wambogo, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.D., that examined how nutrient intakes vary by urbanization level in the United States. More...
A critical step in evaluating the safety and efficacy of dietary supplements is their thorough characterization using valid analytical methods. In this issue of ODS Update: Recent Developments in Dietary Supplement Science, we highlight three recent publications that demonstrate the use of reference materials (RMs) as important tools in the field of dietary supplement research. The publications include a review of vitamin D RMs co-authored by Adam Kuszak, Ph.D., Director of the ODS Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program, and Stephen Wise, Ph.D., an ICF scientific consultant who supports ODS. More...
Our inaugural issue of ODS Update: Recent Developments in Dietary Supplement Science highlights three recent publications that advance our understanding of how dietary supplements can enhance nutritional status during pregnancy. More...