(06-04-13) Your depression may be due to vitamin D deficiency

by J. D. Heyes

(NaturalNews) A new study by Canadian researchers has found that some
depression may be linked to a vitamin D deficiency.

"A systematic review and meta-analysis of 14 studies with a total of 31,424
participants revealed an association between vitamin D levels and depression,"
said a summary of the study, from researchers at the Department of Psychiatry
and Behavioral Neurosciences, St Joseph's Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

"One case-control study, ten cross-sectional studies and three cohort studies
were reviewed. Researchers found that low levels of vitamin D corresponded to
depression, and that lower levels of vitamin D increased odds for depression,"
the summary continued.

Boost vitamin D to improve depression

The meta-analysis, led by Prof. Rebecca Anglin, involved examining six
databases for research studies related to depression and vitamin D levels. The
research team looked for randomized controlled trials, case-control studies,
cross-sectional studies and cohort studies, in which depression was the element
being studied and a vitamin D blood level was drawn as a potential intervention
or risk factor.

"Overall, the summary estimates of all analyses suggest a relationship between
vitamin D and depression," the research team concluded.

"Given the high prevalence of both vitamin D deficiency and depression, an
association between these two conditions would have significant public health
implications, particularly as supplementation with vitamin D is cost-effective
and without significant adverse effects," the team said. "The observational
studies to date provide some evidence for a relationship between vitamin D
deficiency and depression," but more research is "urgently needed to determine
whether vitamin D can prevent and treat depression."

The study's results mirrored those of earlier studies, including one that
focused primarily on the link between lower vitamin D levels and depression in
women.

That study, released in 2012, found that "women with moderate to severe
depression had substantial improvement in their symptoms of depression after
they received treatment for their vitamin D deficiency," ScienceDaily.com
reported, adding that the study's results were presented in June at The
Endocrine Society's 94th Annual Meeting in Houston.

The authors of the study concluded that correction of patients' vitamin D
shortage could have been responsible for an improvement in their depression
because the women had not adjusted or changed antidepressant medications or
other environmental factors that relate to depression.

"Vitamin D may have an as-yet-unproven effect on mood, and its deficiency may
exacerbate depression," Sonal Pathak, MD, an endocrinologist at Bayhealth
Medical Center in Dover, Del., said. "If this association is confirmed, it may
improve how we treat depression."

Pathak presented her findings in three women, ranging in age from 42 to 66,
all of whom had previously been diagnosed with major depressive disorder (also
known as clinical depression). All were receiving antidepressant therapy, and
all were being treated for either Type-II diabetes or hypothyroidism.

Depressive state for each woman improved with therapy

Because they each had risk factors for vitamin D deficiency, such as reduced
vitamin D intake and a lack of exposure to the sun, the trio was given a 25-
hydroxyvitamin D blood test, which revealed low levels of vitamin D for all
three, ranging from 8.9 to 14.5 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL), Pathak
reported. According to The Endocrine Society, levels below 21 ng/mL are
considered vitamin D deficiency, and normal vitamin D levels are above 30
ng/mL.

Over the course of eight to 12 weeks, the women were given oral vitamin D
replacement therapy, which restored their levels to normal. After treatment,
their levels ranged from 32 to 38 ng/mL according to the study abstract.

Following their treatment, all three women reported a significant improvement
in their depressive state, as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory.
According to the BDI, a score of zero to nine indicates minimal depression; 10
to 18, mild depression; 19 to 29 moderate depression; and 30 to 63 indicates
severe depression.

One of the women improved from 32 before vitamin D therapy to 12; another from
26 to eight; and the third fell from 21 to 16, which is also in the mild range.

"Screening at-risk depressed patients for vitamin D deficiency and treating it
appropriately may be an easy and cost-effective adjunct to mainstream therapies
for depression," Pathak said.

Sources:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/06/120625152358.htm

http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/40584

http://www.naturalnews.com/Vitamin_D.html

News

---

In evidenza

"L'informazione presente nel sito serve a migliorare, e non a sostituire, il rapporto medico-paziente."

Per coloro che hanno problemi di salute si consiglia di consultare sempre il proprio medico curante.