Vitamin and mineral supplements: Are they associated with fatigue?

Background and aims: Vitamin/mineral supplements (VMS) and vitamin/mineral and/or dietary supplements (VMDS) are commonly consumed, based on the belief of their invigorating properties. Still, the association of VMS/VMDS with fatigue in the general population remains sparse and conclusions are mixed. This study aimed to understand the association between VMS/VMDS and fatigue. Methods: Two cross-sectional studies (2014-2017 and 2018-2021) conducted on a population-based cohort. Participants were divided into VMS/VMDS users and non-users. Fatigue levels were assessed using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and the 14-item version of the Chalder Fatigue Scale (CFS). Results: Overall, 2084 (50.8 % female, 61.7 +/- 9.8 years) and 1728 (51.0 % female, 64.1 +/- 9.3 years) were included in the first and second surveys, respectively. In the first survey, after multivariable analysis, no association was found between VMS use and FSS: adjusted mean +/- sem 3.04 +/- 0.13 vs. 2.82 +/- 0.03 for users and non-users, respectively, p = 0.083, while users scored higher in the CFS: 6.17 +/- 0.22 vs. 5.72 +/- 0.06 for users and non-users, respectively, p = 0.048. In the second survey, no association was found between VMS use and FSS (2.83 +/- 0.19 vs. 2.84 +/- 0.03, p = 0.952) and CFS (5.38 +/- 0.33 vs. 5.61 +/- 0.06, p = 0.504). In the first survey, VMDS users scored higher in both FSS (3.03 +/- 0.06 vs. 2.76 +/- 0.04, p < 0.001) and CFS (6.19 +/- 0.11 vs. 5.58 +/- 0.06, p < 0.001) while no differences were found in the second survey in both FSS (2.93 +/- 0.07 vs. 2.81 +/- 0.04, p = 0.161) and CFS (5.78 +/- 0.12 vs. 5.54 +/- 0.07, p = 0.088). Conclusion: In this population-based cross-sectional study, the authors found no consistent association between VMS consumption and fatigue. Participants taking VMDS tended to present with higher fatigue scores. (c) 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/4.0/).