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Table 1 Methods in investigations of DS use by military personnel

From: A systematic review and meta-analysis on the prevalence of dietary supplement use by military personnel

Study

Subjects

Methods for collecting supplement information

Reporting timeframe

Response rate (%) - proportion of population participating in investigation

Methodological quality score (%)

Carlson et al. [14]

43 ♂ US Army senior non-commissioned officers

Questionnaire with items on DS use

Current Use

86

75

Klicka et al. [15]

119 ♂ & 86 ♀ cadets at the US Military Academy at West Point NY

7-day dietary record with interview

Use over 7 days

Not provided

38

Schneider et al. [21]

91 ♂ US Navy SEAL personnel

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current Use

Not provided

25

Kennedy and Arsenault [33]

2,215 ♂ US Army soldiers entering Special Forces and Ranger training

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current use, ≥ 1 time/wk, within last 3 months

99

66

Warber et al. [16]

2,547 ♂ & 494 ♀ US Army soldiers from 32 Army installations world-wide

Questionnaires with items on DSs

Current use ≥1 time/wk

Not provided

59

McGraw et al. [22]

367 ♂ US Army Rangers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use in past 6 months

Not provided

41

Sheppard et al. [34]

102 ♂ & 31 ♀ US service members using health clubs

Questionnaire focused on creatine and use of other DSs

Current use

70

66

Arsenault & Cline [35]

50 ♀ officers in Basic Officer Training

7-day dietary record with interview

Use over 7 day period

Not provided

42

Stevens and Olsen [36]

439 ♂ & 60 ♀ US marine or AF basic trainees

Questionnaire focused on ergogenic DS use

Any use in lifetime

91

91

Shanks [17]

224 ♀ active duty US AF women

Questionnaire focused on herbal therapy

Use in the last 2 years

45

75

Bovill et al. [12]

119 ♂ US Army Special Forces soldiers

Questionnaire on nutrition and DS use

Current use

Not provided

29

Deuster et al. [5]

38 ♂ US Army Rangers at Fort Bragg, North Carolina

General health questionnaire with items on DSs

Daily Use

Not provided

29

Brasfield [6]

750 ♂ & 124 ♀ US Army soldiers from 16 Army posts

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current use ≥1 time/wk

58

59

Castillo et al. [18]

1,326 ♂ & 120 ♀ US marines at Camp Pendleton, California

Questionnaire (Marine Health Behavior Survey) with items on DSs

Use in last year

85

59

Bray et al. [19, 25]

12,119 ♂ & 4,027 ♀ US quad-service members (23% Army; 29% Navy, 21% Marine Corps, 28% AF)

Questionnaire with items on DS use

Current use ≥1 time/wk in last year

53

88

Smith et al. [37]

1,009 ♂ and 296 ♀ US Navy and Marine Corps personnel (72% Navy, 22% Marine Corps, 6% Navy Reserve/Guard)

Questionnaire with items on DS use

Use in past year

35

79

Johnson et al. [30, 38]

294 ♂ US Army Rangers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current Use

39

41

Corum [23]

3,789 ♂ & 1,146 ♀ US Army soldiers assigned in Europe

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current use

Not provided

38

French [24]

376 US service members, active duty, National Guard, or reserves

On-line questionnaire focused on DS use

Use in past 3 months

60

38

Lieberman [29]

284 ♂ & 31 ♀ US senior military officers at the US Army War College, all services

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use ≥ 1 time/wk

Not provided

34

Lieberman [27]

768 ♂ US Army Rangers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use ≥1 time/wk

Not provided

25

Lieberman [28]

152 ♂ US Army Special Forces soldiers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use ≥1 time/wk

Not provided

29

Lieberman [26]

444 ♂ & 40 ♀ US Army soldiers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use ≥1 time/wk

80

46

Thomasos 2008 [31]

10,985 US AF personnel at 27 major installations

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current use

Not provided

38

Young and Stephens [39]

236 ♂ & 83 ♀ US Marine Corps recruits entering basic training

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use at any time in past

65

54

Boos et al. [7]

889 ♂ & 128 ♀ UK Soldiers deployed in Basra, Iraq

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current Use

66

66

Lieberman et al. [8, 41, 42]

859 ♂ &131 ♀ US Army soldiers from 11 locations including two overseas; 17 ♂ Special Forces soldiers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use ≥1 time/wk in last 6 months

~80

71

Wells & Webb [20]

197 US AF trainees in Tactical Air Control Party training

Questionnaire with items on DSs

Current Use

Not provided

41

Boos et al. [40]

78 ♂ & 9 ♀ UK soldiers deployed in Afghanistan

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Current use

58

29

Jacobson et al. [43]

72,718 ♂ & 33,980 ♀ US service members (active & reserve) enrolled in the Millennium Cohort Study

Questionnaire including item on DS use

Use in last 12 months

68

88

Toblin et al. [44]

988 ♂ US Army soldiers and marines deployed to Afghanistan

Questionnaire including item on energy drinks

Daily Use

79

71

Kjertakov et al. 2013 [45]

132 ♂ Macedonian Special Operations soldiers

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use in last 3 months

Not provided

41

Cassler et al. [9]

310 ♂ & 19 ♀ US marines deployed in Afghanistan (Camp Leatherneck)

Questionnaire focused on DS use

Use in last 30 days

Not provided

38

  1. Abbreviations: ♂ = men, ♀ = women; DS(s) = dietary supplement(s); US = United States; UK = United Kingdom; AF = Air Force; SEAL = Sea, Air, Land (US Navy special operations personnel); wk = week; NY = New York.