With a greater number of nurses and doctors taking supplements and recommending them to their patients, it's no surprise to learn the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements is among four federal agencies sponsoring an Economic Analysis of Nutritional Interventions workshop later this month in Bethesda, Md.

Considering recent stats have determined the average American family earning $60,000 may spend more than 40 percent of their annual income on medical expenses in the decade to come, experts are desperately looking for better, safer and less expensive solutions to the healthcare crisis.

Perhaps, the NIH finally paid some attention to a 2007 report by The Lewin Group (commissioned by the Dietary Supplement Education Alliance) that found the use of selected dietary supplements could "improve the health of key populations and save the nation more than $24 BILLION in healthcare costs."

The only surprise to us: Why did it take so long for experts to figure this elegantly simple solution out?

If you want to make a dent of your own in the healthcare crisis, start with learning more about Nutritional Supplement Quality -- The Facts.

National Institutes of Health/Office of Dietary Supplements

The Integrator Blog February 3, 2010