Table 3.
Reasons for and against dietary supplement use.
| All n (%) | Males n (%) | Females n (%) | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reasons for Use | ||||
| Enhance diet | 127 (76.0) | 94 (56.3) | 33 (19.8) | 0.424 |
| Promote immune system function | 88 (52.7) | 66 (39.5) | 22 (13.2) | 0.490 |
| Increase quality/duration of sleep | 76 (45.5) | 53 (31.7) | 23 (13.8) | 0.602 |
| Improve cognitive ability | 54 (32.3) | 34 (20.4) | 20 (12.0) | 0.066 |
| Decrease repetitive or restrictive behavior | 21 (12.6) | 16 (9.6) | 5 (3.0) | 0.798 |
| Promote sociability | 18 (10.8) | 12 (7.2) | 6 (3.6) | 0.581 |
| Increase interactions with others | 13 (7.8) | 8 (4.8) | 5 (3.0) | 0.349 |
| Enhance motor skills | 12 (7.2) | 9 (5.4) | 3 (1.8) | 1.000 |
| Reasons Against Use | ||||
| Inadequate knowledge/information | 14 (32.6) | 12 (27.9) | 2 (4.7) | 1.000 |
| Too expensive | 8 (18.6) | 7 (16.3) | 1 (2.3) | 1.000 |
| May be considered harmful | 5 (11.6) | 5 (11.6) | 0 (0.0) | 0.574 |
| Based on suggestion from close family/friends | 4 (9.3) | 4 (9.3) | 0 (0.0) | 1.000 |
| Read in scholarly article | 4 (9.3) | 4 (9.3) | 0 (0.0) | 1.000 |
Reasons for use are listed for the parents who indicated that their child had taken supplements (n = 167). Reasons against use are listed for the parents who indicated that their child had not taken supplements (n = 43). Data is presented as a count (percentage of total).