Dietary supplement use in longevity: evidence from 2,877 centenarians.

Abstract

Centenarians represent a population achieving extreme longevity. Despite growing interest in the role of dietary supplements in aging, there is limited research examining their use among centenarians. This study assessed the prevalence, duration, and frequency of dietary supplement use among centenarians in China. Data on self-reported supplement usage were sourced from the 2018 wave of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The analysis included 2,169 female and 708 male centenarians. Descriptive statistics were used to report prevalence, duration, and frequency of use, stratified by sex. Overall, 10.7% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 9.4%, 12.0%) of females and 12.3% (95% CI = 9.9%, 14.7%) of males reported using dietary supplements. The prevalence of calcium, protein, multivitamin, vitamin A/D, iron, zinc, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) use was between 6.5-7.3%, 3.7-5.8%, 2.8-3.0%, 1.9-2.1%, 1.2-1.4%, 1.2-1.3%, 0.4-0.7%, respectively. The frequency of use was typically reported as "often". The median duration of supplement use was from 2 to 10 years. Most supplement users (7.3-8.8%) consumed a single supplement. Approximately one in ten centenarians in China reported using dietary supplements. The most commonly consumed supplements were calcium, protein, and multivitamins, while DHA was the least commonly used. Participants who reported using supplements generally indicated regular consumption. The overall pattern of dietary supplement use was similar between females and males. Given the low overall prevalence of supplement use, this lifestyle practice appears to play a relatively minor role in the lives of centenarians in China.