Vitamin D is the lowest-cost depression treatment: only pennies a day
Single 50,000 IU capsule bi-weekly or weekly (RCT)
Start with 50,000 IU daily for the first week to get results in 1 week,
otherwise must wait for 2 months to notice reduced depression
Can get 50,000 IU Vitamin D anywhere on the globe
Both Omega-3 and Magnesium also reduce depression
U.S. Depression Rates Reach New Highs - Gallup May 2023
Gallup Survey
17.8% of Americans currently have, or are, being treated for depression
Note: Almost 2X increase in 6 years in those in their 20's
VitaminDWiki – Depression category contains
- Low vitamin D is associated with most types of depression, Including: Seasonal Affective Disorder. manic depression, bipolar disorder, dysthymia, Depression during/after pregnancy, Seniors, Suicide
- Depression substantially reduced by Vitamin D, Omega-3, Magnesium, etc – many studies
- Seasonal Affective Disorder is treated by both bright light and Vitamin D because both make serotonin
- Supplementing with Vitamin D (or getting more sun) decreases most types of depression as well as drugs
- Omega-3, Magnesium, and St. Johns' Wort also decrease depression
- Speculate that some combination (Vit D, Omega-3, Mg, St John's) will decrease depression even more
- Note: Both Omega-3 and Magnesium increase the amount of vitamin D which gets to tissues
- Antidepressants reduce cellular Vitamin D, increasing fractures, CVD, etc. - Oct 2022
- There are
260 items in the Depression category in VitaminDWiki Some recent publications
- Depression in seniors greatly reduced by Vitamin D (e.g. 50,000 IU) – meta-analysis June 2023
- Depression reduced if take more than 5,000 IU of vitamin D daily – umbrella meta-analysis – Jan 2023
- Post-partum depression and low Vitamin D - many studies
- Depression: Low vitamin D in the strongest of 11 risk factors – Jan 2023
Intervention of Vitamin D for Depression
- Infants getting an additional 800 IU of vitamin D for 2 years had 60% fewer psychiatric symptoms at age 7 – RCT May 2023
- Anxiety and Depression decreased in senior prediabetics with weekly 25,000 IU of Vitamin D – RCT Sept 2022
- Depression decreased by Vitamin D (12th study in VitaminDWiki) – RCT Nov 2022
- Overweight needed more EPA (4 grams) to fight depression – RCT Aug 2022
- Omega-3 did not prevent depression (they failed to reduce Omega-6, which blocks Omega-3) – RCT Dec 2021
- Weekly Vitamin D plus daily Magnesium is great (reduced depression in obese women in this case) – July 2021
- Depression in psychiatric youths reduced 28 percent after just 1 month of vitamin D – RCT Feb 2020
- Yet another study confirms Depression is treated by weekly Vitamin D (50,000 IU)– RCT Dec 2019
- Depression decreased after vitamin D (50,000 IU weekly to elderly in the case) – RCT Oct 2019
- Vitamin D - no cure for depression (when you use only 1200 IU) – Aug 2019
- Depression reduced in Diabetics with 3 months of 4,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT July 2019
- Vitamin D treatment of diabetes (50,000 IU every 2 weeks) augmented by probiotic – RCT June 2018
- Women had better sexual desire, orgasm and satisfaction after Vitamin D supplementation – Feb 2018
- Vitamin D depression RCT canceled: too many were taking Vitamin D supplements, etc. Feb 2018
- Depression in adolescent girls reduced somewhat by 50,000 IU weekly for 9 weeks – July 2017
- Perinatal depression decreased 40 percent with just a few weeks of 2,000 IU of vitamin D – RCT Aug 2016
- Just 1500 IU of Vitamin D significantly helps Prozac – RCT March 2013
- Reduced depression with single 300,000 IU injection of vitamin D – RCT June 2013
- 40,000 IU vitamin D weekly reduced depression in many obese subjects – RCT 2008
- 50,000 IU Vitamin D weekly Improves Mood, Lowers Blood Pressure in Type 2 Diabetics – Oct 2013
Meta-analyses of Vitamin D and Depression
- Depression in seniors greatly reduced by Vitamin D (e.g. 50,000 IU) – meta-analysis June 2023
- Depression reduced if take more than 5,000 IU of vitamin D daily – umbrella meta-analysis – Jan 2023
- Depression reduced if use more than 2,800 IU of vitamin D – meta-analysis Aug 2022
- Depression is treated by 2,000 IU of Vitamin D – 2 meta-analyses July 2022
- Depression treated by 50K IU Vitamin D weekly (but not 1,000 IU daily) – meta-analysis Jan 2021
- Mental disorders fought by Omega-3 etc. - meta-meta-analysis Oct 2019
- Depression less likely if more Vitamin D (12 percent per 10 ng) – meta-analysis July 2019
- Anxiety severity reduced if more than 2 grams of Omega-3 – meta-analysis Sept 2018
- Less depression in seniors taking enough Omega-3 – meta-analysis July 2018
- Unipolar depression treated by Omega-3, Zinc, and probably Vitamin D – meta-analysis Oct 2017
- Depression is associated with low Magnesium – meta-analysis April 2015
- Clinical Trials of vitamin D can have “biological flaws” – Jan 2015
- Slight depression not reduced by adding vitamin D if already had enough (no surprise) – meta-analysis – Nov 2014
- Anti-depression medication about as good as big increase in vitamin D – meta-analysis of flawless data April 2014
- Depression might be reduced by vitamin D – meta-analysis March 2014
- Low vitamin D and depression - Study and meta-analysis, April 2013
- 2X more likely to be depressed if low vitamin D (cohort studies) - Meta-analysis Jan 2013
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