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Vitamin D and the occurrence of depression: causal association or circumstantial evidence?
Open accessAbstract
While recent laboratory-based studies have substantially advanced our understanding of the action of vitamin D in the brain, much is still unknown concerning how vitamin D relates to mood. The few epidemiological studies of vitamin D and depression have produced inconsistent results and generally have had substantial methodological limitations. Recent findings from a randomized trial suggest that high doses of supplemental vitamin D may improve mild depressive symptoms, but important questions persist concerning how vitamin D may affect monoamine function and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to stress, whether vitamin D supplementation can improve mood in individuals with moderate-to-severe depression, and whether vitamin D sufficiency is protective against incident depression and recurrence. At this time, it is premature to conclude that vitamin D status is related to the occurrence of depression. Additional prospective studies of this relationship are essential.
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“favorable effects from zinc supplementation on depression-related symptoms have been demonstrated in previous clinical trials (13,51,52)”
From Effects of zinc, vitamin D, and their co-supplementation on mood, serum cortisol, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in patients with obesity and mild to moderate depressive symptoms: A phase II, 12-wk, 2 × 2 factorial design, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (2020) · cites this paper as [51]
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“In Ranjbar et al, it was reported that serum levels of BDNF in depressed patients receiving zinc supplement did not increase (51).”
From Effects of zinc, vitamin D, and their co-supplementation on mood, serum cortisol, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in patients with obesity and mild to moderate depressive symptoms: A phase II, 12-wk, 2 × 2 factorial design, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (2020) · cites this paper as [51]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Bertone-Johnson, E. R.
- Venue
- Nutrition Reviews
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2009-08
- Volume
- 67
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 481-492
- ISSN
- 0029-6643 (ISSN-L)
- 1753-4887
- PMC
- PMC2950608
- OpenAlex
- W2164305641
- Cited by
- 240
- References
- 73
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 24 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 20 · 2012: 19
- FWCI
- 1.73
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Nutrition Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- National Institutes of Health
- National Institute of Mental Health (K01MH076274, MH076274)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Vitamin D Research Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology (medical) › Treatment of Major Depression
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutrition and Health Studies
- Keywords
- vitamin D, depression, vitamin D supplementation, mood, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, depression recurrence, vitamin D sufficiency, causal relationship
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, Animals, Brain, Depression, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Premenstrual Syndrome, Stress, Psychological, Vitamin D, Vitamin D Deficiency, Biogenic Monoamines, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Receptors, Calcitriol, Mice
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