The Perception of Minerals and Their Prevalence in Fortified Foods and Supplements in Japan

Tsuyoshi Chiba
Nanae Tanemura
Chiharu Nishijima

People's intake of some minerals does not meet the nutrient reference values even in high-income countries. Recently, the deficiency of zinc and/or selenium has been considered to cause greater risk of COVID-19 infection and severity. To investigate consumer awareness, we conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire online survey among Japanese people (7500 males and 7500 females) concerning their perceptions of each mineral and the prevalence of mineral-fortified foods and/or mineral supplements. People's perception of each mineral varied: the highest was for calcium (91.8%) and the lowest was for selenium (44.7%). In addition, only a portion of participants believed that they consumed a sufficient amount of each mineral; the highest was sodium (23.7%), and the lowest was manganese (5.2%). In addition, 18.2% of them felt that they could not consume enough sodium, even though most of the Japanese's intake is excessive. Among mineral-fortified-food and/or mineral-supplement users, the purposes for these products were to maintain health (80.6%), supplement nutrients (48.0%), and prevent infectious diseases (23.2%). Only 18.4% of participants knew what amount they took. In conclusion, education is needed to prevent not only the insufficiency/deficiency of each mineral but also an excess intake of sodium.

Nutrients

14

13

2586

10.3390/nu14132586

https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14132586
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35807765
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9268031