Codes and Frequencies
Description
For sample adults in 2002 who had ever used vitamins for their own health or treatment (VITEV) and had used high or megavitamin therapy for this purpose (VITMEGAEV), VITYR indicates whether they had used high dose or megavitamin therapy for their own health or treatment during the past 12 months.
Definition
The 2002 Field Representative's Manual defines "high dose or megavitamin therapy" as:
This definition was not routinely shared with respondents.
Follow-up Questions
Respondents who indicated that they had used high dose or megavitamin therapy in the past 12 months were asked a series of follow-up questions.
These include:
- Specific vitamins taken in high dose (VITYCOEN, VITYDHE, VITYVITAD, VITYVITB, VITYZINC, VITACALC, VITAMULTV, VITASELN, VITAMINC, VITAMINE)
- Whether used megavitamin therapy for specific health problem (VITYTREAT)
- Importance of use of megavitamin therapy (VITYIMPORT)
- Reasons for using megavitamin therapy (VITYCOMBIN, VITYHCREC, VITYINTER, VITYMEDCOST, VITYMEDFAIL)
- Whether informed conventional medical practitioners of use of megavitamin therapy (VITYLCONVHP, VITYLDENT, VITLDO, VITYLMD, VITYLNURS, VITLPHARM, VITLPSYCHI, VITLPSYCHO)
Persons who indicated in VITYTREAT that they had used high dose or megavitamin therapy in the past 12 months to treat a specific health problem were asked to specify the condition treated. There are 74 variables for specific conditions that respondents could report treating with megavitamin therapy.
See VITYTREAT for more detail and the full list of conditions that persons could indicate were treated with megavitamin therapy. Analysts interested in the conditions that megavitamin therapy was used to treat may also wish to consult the following variables:
- First condition for which megavitamin therapy was used (VITYCON1
- Degree of help from megavitamin therapy, 1st condition (VITYCON1HELP)
- Second condition for which megavitamin therapy was used (VITYCON2)
- Degree of help from megavitamin therapy, 2nd condition (VITYCON2HELP)
- Third condition for which megavitamin therapy was used (VITYCON3)
- Degree of help from megavitamin therapy, 3rd condition (VITYCON3HELP)
- Condition count for megavitamin therapy (VITYCONNO)
Many other variables dealing with vitamin use were included in other years of the NHIS. VITYR and its follow-up variables deal with vitamins taken in high dose, but the vitamin variables from other years (1992, 2000, 2005, and 2007) do not specify any particular dosage. For more information about the full range of vitamin variables from years other than 2002, see VITMO and VITANY.
Universe
- 2002: Sample adults age 18+ who have ever used vitamins for their health or treatment.
Availability
- 2002
Weights
- 2002 : SAMPWEIGHT