Prevalence, knowledge, and association of dietary supplement usage among University of KwaZulu-Natal students

The use of dietary supplements (DS) is rapidly increasing, with the industry valued at R7 billion annually in South Africa. University students, particularly vulnerable to DS use, often lack awareness of potential risks. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, knowledge and association of DS usage with physical activity among University of KwaZulu-Natal students. An online questionnaire gathered data on DS knowledge and usage related to physical activity. Descriptive statistics summarised the data, while inferential statistics determined significance, set at p≤0.05. Results showed 13.6% of students used DS, with no significant difference between health science (58.3%) and life science students (41.7%) (p=0.8). Physically active DS users (41.7%) outnumbered sedentary users (16.7%) (p=0.03). Primary motives for DS use included enhancing energy, improving performance and boosting immunity. Health science students exhibited significantly higher DS knowledge than their non-health science peers (p=0.02). The study concludes that educational interventions are necessary to increase awareness of DS hazards and promote safe usage among students, especially those involved in physical activities, regardless of their academic discipline. Future research should focus on using larger, randomly selected samples to improve the generalisability of the findings.