Table 2 Consumption and reasons for use of DS by medical students
Characteristics | MSEP n (%) | MSNEP n (%) | Total n (%) | p-valuesa |
|---|---|---|---|---|
DS use | 0.337 | |||
Yes | 98 (51) | 80 (56) | 178 (53) | |
No | 94 (49) | 62 (44) | 156 (47) | |
OTC medications use | 0.094 | |||
Yes | 16 (8) | 20 (14) | 36 (11) | |
No | 176 (92) | 122 (86) | 298 (89) | |
Prescription drugs use | 0.101 | |||
Yes | 7 (4) | 11 (8) | 18 (5) | |
No | 185 (96) | 131 (92) | 316 (95) | |
Reasons for DS use | ||||
Improve general health | 90 (47) | 74 (52) | 164 (49) | 0.344 |
Strengthen immunity | 72 (38) | 57 (40) | 129 (39) | 0.624 |
Improve nutrition | 62 (32) | 42 (30) | 104 (31) | 0.596 |
Enhance athletic performance | 56 (29) | 24 (17) | 80 (24) | 0.009* |
Improve concentration | 34 (18) | 23 (16) | 57 (17) | 0.717 |
Increase endurance | 28 (15) | 23 (16) | 51 (15) | 0.685 |
Relieve stress | 14 (7) | 9 (6) | 23 (7) | 0.734 |
Promote weight loss | 14 (7) | 8 (6) | 22 (7) | 0.546 |
Prevent/relieve PMS | 6 (3) | 1 (1) | 7 (2) | 0.127 |
Types of DS use | ||||
Vitamins | 66 (34) | 60 (42) | 126 (38) | 0.142 |
Minerals | 30 (16) | 34 (24) | 64 (19) | 0.056 |
Herbal DS | 18 (9) | 13 (9) | 31 (9) | 0.945 |
Non-herbal DS | 43 (22) | 31 (22) | 74 (22) | 0.902 |
Multivitamins | 36 (19) | 27 (19) | 63 (19) | 0.951 |
Vitamins + minerals | 28 (15) | 22 (16) | 50 (15) | 0.818 |
Multivitamins + minerals | 37 (19) | 8 (6) | 45 (14) | <0.001** |
Multivitamins + multiminerals | 24 (12) | 65 (46) | 89 (27) | <0.001** |