补充剂产业正迅速扩张，制造商纷纷推出针对心理健康和睡眠辅助的客制化配方产品。部分品牌如Stasis明确将儿童产品定位为「服用兴奋剂儿童的完整日常系统」，而Olly和Hiya Health等品牌则透过名人和网红在Instagram及TikTok上推广产品。美国补充剂市场2025年销售额约达740亿美元，预计2029年将接近1000亿美元，儿童健康补充剂市场自2020年以来稳步增长。联合利华等大型消费品公司也注意到这一趋势，积极收购相关品牌。
在美国卫生部长小罗伯特·甘迺迪推动减少精神科药物过度处方的背景下，文化氛围正从传统药物治疗转向替代疗法。多位医生表示，越来越多家长询问关于为患有焦虑症或ADHD的幼儿使用补充剂的问题。然而，专家警告补充剂可能加剧副作用或降低处方药的疗效，且由于补充剂在上市前无需经过美国食品药物管理局（FDA）批准，其品质和纯度参差不齐。医生们强调，患者应与医疗提供者讨论他们正在服用的所有产品，而非仅依赖网路上群众外包式的治疗建议。
A growing number of young people diagnosed with ADHD are turning to dietary supplements as alternatives or complements to prescription medications, often assembling their regimens through online research and social media platforms. TikTok has become a major e-commerce channel for supplements, generating roughly $1 billion in US sales in 2025, while ADHD-related hashtag-linked supplement revenue on TikTok Shop reached nearly $7 million over twelve months. Surveys indicate that over half of high schoolers have used social media to self-diagnose mental health conditions, and a rising percentage of young adults are disregarding medical guidance in favor of social media advice, raising concerns among psychiatrists and researchers.
The supplement industry has responded to this demand by expanding product lines focused on mental health support and sleep aid, with some companies creating custom blends explicitly marketed alongside stimulant medication use. Brands like Olly, Hiya Health, and Stasis target both adult and children's markets, often leveraging influencer partnerships on TikTok and Instagram. The US supplement market is projected to grow from $74 billion in 2025 to nearly $100 billion by 2029, with children's health supplements steadily increasing since 2020. Major corporations such as Unilever have entered the space through acquisitions, signaling the sector's mainstream commercial appeal.
The cultural shift away from prescription psychiatric medications has been amplified by US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s push to address overprescription, particularly among children. While his deprescription initiative does not explicitly mention supplements, Kennedy is a vocal advocate of alternative treatments. Medical professionals caution that supplements are largely unregulated, may vary significantly in quality and purity, and can interact negatively with prescription drugs. Doctors emphasize the importance of patients consulting their healthcare providers about all substances they consume, rather than relying solely on crowdsourced treatment advice from social media platforms.