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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by Phillipa on May 11, 2018, at 18:29:24
For your information. Phillipa
News > Medscape Medical News > Conference News > APA 2018
Vitamin D Supplementation May Help Ease Depression
Megan BrooksMay 10, 2018
19Read Comments
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NEW YORK Vitamin D supplementation may help reduce depressive symptoms, new results of an updated meta-analysis show."People who were vitamin D deficient and depressed seemed to respond best to supplementation, but there was some evidence that supplementation improved depressive symptoms in people who had a normal level of vitamin D," Marissa Flaherty, MD, of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, told Medscape Medical News.
Globally, more than 300 million people suffer from depression. It's the number one cause of years lost to disability worldwide. In the United States, the overall prevalence of vitamin D deficiency hovers around 42%, with the highest rate seen in blacks.
"In my third year of residency, I noticed that a lot of my depressed patients had very low vitamin D levels, and when I supplemented their vitamin D, their depressive symptoms, particularly their fatigue and energy levels, would improve," Flaherty said.
To investigate further, Flaherty and her colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of five randomized controlled trials published from 2011 to 2016 that examined the effect of vitamin D supplementation (vs no supplementation) on depressive symptoms, as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale.
The number of participants in these studies ranged from 40 to 746. The type and route of vitamin D supplementation varied, as did the study length (from 3 to 52 weeks) and the results. For example:
A 6-week study published in 2011 found no effect of daily supplementation with 5000 IU cholecalciferol on ratings of depression in a group of young healthy adults.
An 8-week study published in 2013 found that daily supplemention with 1500 IU vitamin D3 plus 20 mg fluoxetine was superior to fluoxetine alone in controlling depressive symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).
A 3-month study found that two single intramuscular injections of 150,000 or 300,000 IU vitamin D improved depression ratings in depressed adults with vitamin D deficiency.
An 8-week study found that weekly supplementation with 50,000 IU oral vitamin D improved depression scores in patients with MDD.
A 52-week study found that weekly supplementation with 50,000 IU vitamin D3 did not significantly lower depressive symptoms in depressed dialysis patients.
In the pooled data analysis, Flaherty and her colleagues found that vitamin D supplementation improved depressive symptoms, with a medium overall effect size (SMD, 0.495; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.190 - 0.801; P = 0001).
I think all doctors should check vitamin D levels and supplement when needed. Dr Marissa Flaherty
"There was some heterogeneity in some of the studies, but overall, the effect was there," Flaherty told Medscape Medical News. "I think all doctors should check vitamin D levels and supplement when needed. There is no harm in supplementing vitamin D, and most people have low vitamin D," she said.Flaherty presented the results here May 6 at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) annual meeting.
Harmful on Many Fronts
Reached for comment, Gregory Dalack, MD, chair of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, said this is a "good update of the literature. In general, having low vitamin D is not helpful, not just for depression but for bones and all sorts of things."Dalack emphasized the importance of looking at the big picture for patients with depression.
"The way that I think about is, when I am looking to treat someone's depression and trying to optimize their response, if they are not sufficient on their vitamin D level, if they are not taking their meds, if they are not active physically, those are all problems which would undermine their depression," said Dalack.
He also noted that in most of the studies included in this analysis, vitamin D supplementation was not used as a primary treatment but rather to augment therapy with antidepressants, "which is important, because the evidence is not there that you could just use vitamin D as monotherapy and expect them to feel better."
The study had no commercial funding. The authors and Dr Dalack have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
American Psychiatric Association (APA) 2018. Poster P3-096, presented May 6, 2018.
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 11, 2018, at 22:14:38
In reply to Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by Phillipa on May 11, 2018, at 18:29:24
yeah not getting enough sun, or D does lead to depression, the rays from sun make you feel kinda alive, been in a closed room or place for many years with no sun light yes big time depression
Posted by PeterMartin on May 12, 2018, at 1:07:03
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 11, 2018, at 22:14:38
For me the Sun is definitely a good thing.
Vitamin D supplements make me depressed though. I tend to have bad reactions to a lot of the vitamins they suggest. Magnesium....fish oil..probiotics.they always seem to work for a day or two then I end up feeling worse.
Posted by bleauberry on May 12, 2018, at 9:09:23
In reply to Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by Phillipa on May 11, 2018, at 18:29:24
On of the more accurate lab tests to identify the presence of lyme bacteria is the Vitamin D test. That's because it is usually low.
Lyme patients usually have low D. They also usually have depression.
There is interplay happening between D, Lyme, and depression.
I take 5000IU of D per day. Despite being in the sun a lot, my vitamin D levels were only 25% of normal without supplementation.
Lyme messes up Vitamin D, which in turn worsens depression, and also causes/worsens osteoporosis.
Not saying there is a connection even though you can see clearly there probably is.
> For your information. Phillipa
>
> News > Medscape Medical News > Conference News > APA 2018
> Vitamin D Supplementation May Help Ease Depression
> Megan Brooks
>
> May 10, 2018
> 19Read Comments
> Add to Email Alerts
> NEW YORK Vitamin D supplementation may help reduce depressive symptoms, new results of an updated meta-analysis show.
>
> "People who were vitamin D deficient and depressed seemed to respond best to supplementation, but there was some evidence that supplementation improved depressive symptoms in people who had a normal level of vitamin D," Marissa Flaherty, MD, of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, told Medscape Medical News.
>
> Globally, more than 300 million people suffer from depression. It's the number one cause of years lost to disability worldwide. In the United States, the overall prevalence of vitamin D deficiency hovers around 42%, with the highest rate seen in blacks.
>
> "In my third year of residency, I noticed that a lot of my depressed patients had very low vitamin D levels, and when I supplemented their vitamin D, their depressive symptoms, particularly their fatigue and energy levels, would improve," Flaherty said.
>
> To investigate further, Flaherty and her colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of five randomized controlled trials published from 2011 to 2016 that examined the effect of vitamin D supplementation (vs no supplementation) on depressive symptoms, as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale.
>
> The number of participants in these studies ranged from 40 to 746. The type and route of vitamin D supplementation varied, as did the study length (from 3 to 52 weeks) and the results. For example:
>
> A 6-week study published in 2011 found no effect of daily supplementation with 5000 IU cholecalciferol on ratings of depression in a group of young healthy adults.
>
> An 8-week study published in 2013 found that daily supplemention with 1500 IU vitamin D3 plus 20 mg fluoxetine was superior to fluoxetine alone in controlling depressive symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).
>
> A 3-month study found that two single intramuscular injections of 150,000 or 300,000 IU vitamin D improved depression ratings in depressed adults with vitamin D deficiency.
>
> An 8-week study found that weekly supplementation with 50,000 IU oral vitamin D improved depression scores in patients with MDD.
>
> A 52-week study found that weekly supplementation with 50,000 IU vitamin D3 did not significantly lower depressive symptoms in depressed dialysis patients.
>
> In the pooled data analysis, Flaherty and her colleagues found that vitamin D supplementation improved depressive symptoms, with a medium overall effect size (SMD, 0.495; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.190 - 0.801; P = 0001).
>
> I think all doctors should check vitamin D levels and supplement when needed. Dr Marissa Flaherty
> "There was some heterogeneity in some of the studies, but overall, the effect was there," Flaherty told Medscape Medical News. "I think all doctors should check vitamin D levels and supplement when needed. There is no harm in supplementing vitamin D, and most people have low vitamin D," she said.
>
> Flaherty presented the results here May 6 at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) annual meeting.
>
> Harmful on Many Fronts
> Reached for comment, Gregory Dalack, MD, chair of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, said this is a "good update of the literature. In general, having low vitamin D is not helpful, not just for depression but for bones and all sorts of things."
>
> Dalack emphasized the importance of looking at the big picture for patients with depression.
>
> "The way that I think about is, when I am looking to treat someone's depression and trying to optimize their response, if they are not sufficient on their vitamin D level, if they are not taking their meds, if they are not active physically, those are all problems which would undermine their depression," said Dalack.
>
> He also noted that in most of the studies included in this analysis, vitamin D supplementation was not used as a primary treatment but rather to augment therapy with antidepressants, "which is important, because the evidence is not there that you could just use vitamin D as monotherapy and expect them to feel better."
>
> The study had no commercial funding. The authors and Dr Dalack have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
>
> American Psychiatric Association (APA) 2018. Poster P3-096, presented May 6, 2018.
Posted by Phillipa on May 12, 2018, at 10:15:02
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by bleauberry on May 12, 2018, at 9:09:23
Mine is above normal was over 60 during winter. My endo wanted it lower but my internist likes it higher. So now with the daily sun could be higher. Phillipa
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 13, 2018, at 21:17:53
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression » bleauberry, posted by Phillipa on May 12, 2018, at 10:15:02
you can take the supplement, the D supplement, but no sunlight is very depressing ...i think its more than just D in the sunlight, there's like waves or radiation energy that is good for the body, when you in a psych ward the solitary confinement for years, that would be difficult, but if that's only choice it has to be.
When i've been inside too much with the air conditioning at maximum and feel cold, i go outside and the sun makes me better mood lol just feel the waves of it you feel better, no sun = no life
Posted by Lamdage22 on May 14, 2018, at 10:27:34
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 13, 2018, at 21:17:53
i take 7500. It helps the winter blues
Posted by Christ_empowered on May 18, 2018, at 9:25:16
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by Lamdage22 on May 14, 2018, at 10:27:34
i should probably get another bottle. I was taking 5000 IU per day. with all the other supplements, it seemed to help a good bit.
personally, I think b-vitamins have been very helpful for me. I take 2 high potency (b-100) time release tablets per day, in the AM, plus 6 grams of niacinamide (b3). That, along with pushing my vitamin C intake up to Linus Pauling levels (20 grams per day, currently) has been remarkably beneficial for anxiety, moods, agitation, etc.
Posted by Tony P on May 19, 2018, at 22:15:18
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by Christ_empowered on May 18, 2018, at 9:25:16
I take 2,000 IU of D, on my GP's recommendation, although sometimes I forget. I can't say I've noticed a direct effect on my depression, but my mood is so up & down from day-to-day and even within a day, it's hard to tell.
I was on 4,000 U/day, but my Dr said the latest research indicated no benefit from doses over 2,000 U. YMMV.
Posted by Lamdage22 on May 23, 2018, at 12:59:31
In reply to Re: Vita D Supplementation Helps Depression, posted by Tony P on May 19, 2018, at 22:15:18
I may go down a notch to 5000. I have read it can have negative effects if overdosed.
What is a good bloodlevel?
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