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Fish Oil Tops Shopping Lists
February 1, 2010
2 Min Read
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.Among consumers who use multiple dietary supplements, fish oil/omega-3 supplements now top multivitamins in popularity, according to a survey by ConsumerLab.com of 6,012 subscribers to ConsumerLabs free e-newsletter. The survey also found vitamin D usage was up 30 percent in the past year, with resveratrol usage increasing by 66 percent.
We conduct the annual survey to help direct our product testing toward categories and brands of greatest interest to our subscribers; but, the survey also yields insight into the nutrition marketplace, said Tod Cooperman, M.D., president. Among the surveys key findings:
Fish oil/omega-3 supplements were used by 74.0 percent of respondents, up from 71.6 percent in 2008, followed in popularity by multivitamins, which were used by 72 percent, down from 73.8 percent in the prior year. The percentage of people using fish oil/omega-3 remained steady among those aged 35 through 74, dropping slightly among older people.
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) became third most popular supplement, with 55 percent of consumers using it, up from 50.9 percent last year. Calcium use fell from 55.3 percent to 51.2 percent.
Vitamin D was used by 47.9 percent of respondents, up from 36.9 percent in 2008, making it the fifth most popular supplement. Also, usage dramatically increased with age.
Probiotics were used by 30.4 percent of respondents, up from 25 percent last year. One-third of women in the survey used a probiotic.
Resveratrol was used by 19.4 percent of respondents, up from 11.7 percent last year. Men were 50 percent more likely than women to use resveratrol.
Among the places where supplements were purchased, online stores were the most popular, used by 44.1 percent of respondents. This high percentage was due to use of dedicated online retailers as well as the online extensions of merchants traditionally in other retail channels. The next most common place to purchase a supplement was a health food store (33.5 percent), followed by a vitamin store (27.2 percent), mail order catalogue (26.9 percent), pharmacy (25.4 percent), and warehouse club (24.8 percent).
Respondents also gave ratings for 1,481 brands and 1,182 merchants that they used. Fifty-seven brands and 27 merchants each received at least one hundred consumer ratings. The top-rated brands and merchants included:
Top-rated Supplement Brands
Catalogue/Internet Brand: Puritans Pride
Direct Selling (MLM) Brand: Nutrilite
Discount/Warehouse Brand: Members Mark (Sams Club)
Grocery Store Brand: Trader Darwin (Trader Joes)
Health Care Practitioner Brand: Pure Encapsulations
Health Food Store Brand: Carlson Labs
Mass Market Brand: Citracal
Pharmacy Brand: CVS
Store Brand: Vitamin Shoppe
Top-rated Supplement Merchants
Catalogue/Internet: Swanson
Direct Sales (MLM): Nutrilite
Grocery Store: Trader Joes
Mass Market: Target
Online Retailer: iHerb.com
Pharmacy: Walgreens
Vitamin Store: Vitamin Shoppe
Warehouse Store: Costco
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