In this pilot cross-sectional study, a factual supplement safety knowledge score was not independently associated with proactive supplement safety information seeking, while professional information-source use was associated with lower odds of self-initiated supplementation but associations with other outcomes depended partly on outcome definition.
Current dietary supplement use was highly prevalent among adults aged 40 years and older in this sample.
The five-item factual supplement safety knowledge score was not independently associated with proactive supplement safety information seeking.
Professional information-source use was associated with greater odds of the composite proactive supplement safety information-seeking outcome.
Professional information-source use was associated with lower odds of self-initiated supplementation.
The study's findings are described as hypothesis-generating due to multiple methodological limitations.
This research suggests that simply knowing facts about dietary supplement safety does not necessarily lead people to actively seek out safety information about the supplements they take. In a study of 150 Polish adults aged 40 and older, researchers found that three-quarters of participants were currently taking supplements, and the majority of those were taking two or more simultaneously. Despite measuring participants' factual knowledge about supplement safety, higher knowledge scores did not predict whether someone would proactively look up safety information — a pattern the researchers describe as a potential gap between knowing and doing. The study also found that where people get their supplement information matters in some ways. Adults who used professional sources (such as healthcare providers) were less likely to start taking supplements entirely on their own initiative, which could reflect a more cautious or guided approach to supplementation. However, the relationship between professional information sources and other safety behaviors — like seeking out additional safety information online or from leaflets — was less consistent and changed depending on exactly how the researchers defined the behavior being measured. This research suggests that improving people's factual knowledge about supplement safety alone may not be sufficient to change safety-related behaviors, and that the role of professional guidance may be important in shaping how people approach supplementation. However, because this was a small pilot study using a convenience sample with self-reported data, the findings should be interpreted cautiously and need to be confirmed in larger, more rigorous studies before drawing firm conclusions.
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Upload Your LabsWalczyk B, Białek A. (2026). Supplement Safety Knowledge, Information Sources, and Self-Reported Safety-Related Behaviors Among Adults Aged 40 Years and Older: A Pilot Study.. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18172921