Depression

Created July 2016

Depression Overview

items in Depression category

* 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 * Major Depressive Disorder RCTs often use Vitamin D: 50,000 IU weekly or single 300,000 IU - Review May 2025* Depression 1.6 X more likely if low Vitamin D, taking Vitamin D reduces depression – umbrella of meta-analyses – Jan 2023* Depression: Low vitamin D in the strongest of 11 risk factors – Jan 2023* Depression treated by Omega-3 (again) – meta-analysis Aug 2019* 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 ** * items in the Depression category in Vitamin D LifeSome recent publications* Depression in seniors greatly reduced by Vitamin D (50,000 IU weekly) – meta-analysis June 2023* Post-partum depression and low Vitamin D - many studies* Depression: Low vitamin D in the strongest of 11 risk factors – Jan 2023 * (More Depression info below){include}

See also in Vitamin D Life

Analysis of 33 meta-analyses found Omega-3 to be the best way to improve mental health - 2018

The efficacy and safety of nutrient supplements in the treatment of mental disorders: a meta-review of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials

FREE PDF     Described at GrassrootsHealth

Vitamin D Life Mental disorders fought by Omega-3 etc. - meta-meta-analysis Oct 2019

Vitamin D reduces depression (4,000+ IU daily for 8+ weeks) - meta-analysis May 2020

The effect of vitamin D supplement on negative emotions: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Depression and Anxiety May 2020 https://doi.org/10.1002/da.23025

Ying-Chih Cheng, Yu-Chen Huang, Wei-Lieh Huang

The several meta-analyses of the effect of vitamin D on depression have produced inconsistent results and studies dealing with anxiety were not incorporated. There has been no comprehensive analysis of how results are affected by the nature of the sample or the dosage and duration of supplementation. The study is aimed to investigate whether vitamin D supplementation reduces negative emotions and to analyze the possible influence of sample and regimen.

Method

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials comparing the effect of vitamin D and placebo on negative emotion. Databases were searched for relevant articles published before February 2019.

Results

The analysis covered 25 trials with a total of 7,534 participants and revealed an effect of vitamin D on negative emotion (Hedges' g = −0.4990, 95% CI [−0.8453, −0.1528], p = .0047, I2 = 97.7%). Subgroup analysis showed that vitamin D had an effect on patients with major depressive disorder and on subjects with serum 25(OH)D levels ≤50 nmol/L. The pooled data from trials of vitamin D supplementation lasting ≥8 weeks and dosage ≤4,000 IU/day indicated that vitamin D had an effect.

Conclusions

Our results support the hypothesis that vitamin D supplementation can reduce negative emotions. Patients with major depressive disorder and individuals with vitamin D deficiency are most likely to benefit from supplementation. But to interpret the results with high heterogeneity should still be cautious.

📄 Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life

Depression decreased by 300,000 IU injection of Vitamin D - RCT Oct 2020

Effect of adjunctive single dose parenteral Vitamin D supplementation in major depressive disorder with concurrent vitamin D deficiency: A double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial

J. of Psychiatric Research Vol 129, Oct 2020, Pages 250-256 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.07.037 PDF is behind a paywall

Favaz Vellekkatt a, Vikas Menon a, Medha Rajappa b, Jayaprakash Sahoo c

Adjunctive vitamin D replacement is a theoretically promising strategy to improve outcomes in major depression. Our objective was to assess the efficacy of a single parenteral dose of vitamin D supplementation at baseline as an adjunct to treatment as usual on change in depression symptom ratings (primary outcome), quality of life and clinical severity of illness (secondary outcomes) at the end of 12 weeks when compared to treatment as usual in patients with major depression and concurrent Vitamin D deficiency. Eligible participants were randomized to receive either treatment as usual (TAU; n = 23) or TAU plus single parenteral dose of 3,00,000 IU of vitamin D (n = 23) at baseline. Rater-blinded assessments of depression (primary outcome), quality of life (QoL) and clinical severity of illness were obtained at baseline, and end of follow-up (12 weeks). Intent-to-treat analyses were performed on the entire randomized sample. The intervention significantly improved depression symptom ratings, quality of life and clinical severity of illness at the end of the treatment phase. These findings indicate that a single parenteral dose (3,00,000 IU) of adjunctive vitamin D replacement at baseline is an effective and well tolerated intervention in major depressive disorder with concurrent Vitamin D deficiency. Additionally, it points to a possible role for vitamin D in the pathophysiology of depression and supports personalized approaches for treatment of major depressive disorder.

6X increase in Vitamin D and Depression studies in a decade

PubMed indicates that Depression & "Vitamin D" is becoming very popular:

image 146 studies in 2020

Depression Vitamin D trials are being canceled - too many were taking Vitamin D

Vitamin D depression RCT canceled: too many were taking Vitamin D supplements, etc. Feb 2018

Depression drugs, including SSRI

Vitamin D Life - SSRIs (66% of prescribed antidepressants) cause health problems - many studies

2X increase in risk if Sudden Cardiac Death if take antidepressent drugs for > 6 years - April 2025

TrialSiteNews

The Hidden Dangers of Antidepressants and Why It's So Hard to Stop Taking Them - Feb 2025

A MidWestern Doctor on Mercola

  • "Whenever I ask a holistic physician which commonly used medication classes they believe cause the most harm to society, SSRIs always are one of the top five."

  • Note: Statins, NSAIDS like ibuprofen, and PPI acid reflux medications frequently make the top five as well.

  • In a survey of 1,829 patients on antidepressants in New Zealand:

    • 62% reported sexual difficulties
    • 60% felt emotionally numb
    • 52% felt not like themselves
    • 39% cared less about others
    • 47% had experienced agitation
    • 39% had experienced suicidal ideation

  • "A significant amount of data has linked bipolar disorder to SSRIs"

    • "A survey found 60% of bipolar patients only developed their illness after receiving SSRIs for depression"
Just How Far Will the FDA Go To Protect A Bad Drug? (SSRI ) - Dec 2023

Substack

  • "While the FDA initially tried to stop Prozac, once Bush came to power (as his family was in bed with Prozac’s manufacturer), the FDA reversed course."

  • "Since that time, the FDA has gone to extreme lengths to cover up the harms of antidepressants. Much of what the FDA did with the SSRIs was identical to what it’s done with the COVID vaccines and I believe learning what happened in the past is highly instructive for understanding what the FDA is doing now and how to stop it."

  • "Note: Psychiatric medications are one of the most profitable drug franchises, making approximately 40 billion dollars a year"

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  • "This study found that SSRIs increased the rate of violent crimes committed by 43% in those between the ages of 15 and 24 receiving the drugs."

  • "... a much larger survey of SSRI users found 39% had experienced suicidal ideation while on the drugs."

37% of Americans take drugs that list depression as a possible side effect - July 2023

Common medications raise depression risk, NEW study warns

* Depression With Drugs - Are Your Medications Making You Depressed? May 2023

A decade of use of antidepressive drugs doubles CVD - Oct 2022

Long-term antidepressant use tied to an increase in CVD, mortality risk MDEdge

  • " 10-year data from the UK Biobank on over 220,000 adults "

  • "The main culprits were mirtazapine, venlafaxine, duloxetine, and trazodone, although SSRIs were also tied to increased risk"

SSRIs cause long term sexual dysfunction (prescription warnings in Europe and Canada)

  • Antidepressants (SSRI) can cause 'chemical castration' June 2023

    • "In a study from 2001 involving >1000 patients with no previous history of sexual problems, 59% reported sexual dysfunction after commencing an antidepressant. For the five most commonly used drugs, 46% experienced no orgasm or ejaculation."

    • No change by the FDA, but "In June 2019, the European Medicines Agency updated the ‘Special Warnings and Precautions’ section on the label of SSRIs to warn that sexual dysfunction can persist even after treatment stops."

    • Canada also changed

  • POST-SSRI SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION website

    Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction

  • "Close to 100% of people who take antidepressants experience some form of sexual side effects."

  • "Commonly used SSRIs include paroxetine (Paxil, Seroxat), fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), citalopram (Celexa), escitalopram (Lexapro), and vortioxetine (Trintellix)."

  • "The RxISK Prize of $100,000 USD is offered to anyone who can provide a cure for persistent sexual side effects after stopping antidepressants, finasteride, or isotretinoin."

Why Are Antidepressants (SSRIs) so Harmful? - Nov 2023

Subtack Nov 26, 2023

  • "Like many other stimulant drugs (e.g., cocaine) SSRIs are highly addictive. Because of this, patients will get severely ill when they attempt to stop them (withdrawals affect roughly half of SSRI users) and it is often extremely difficult to withdraw from them. In this article, I will cover the approaches I know for that since very few resources exist for people in that situation."

  • "For example, in a survey of 1,829 patients on antidepressants in New Zealand,

    • 62% reported sexual difficulties,

    • 60% felt emotionally numb,

    • 52% felt not like themselves,

    • 39% cared less about others,

    • 47% had experienced agitation and

    • 39% had experienced suicidal ideation."

  • "•An international survey of 3,516 people from 14 patient advocacy groups found that 44% had permanently stopped taking a psychiatric drug due to its side effects."

Antidepressant drugs often not effective and hard to stop using - Oct 2022

How to make better use of antidepressants - The Economist

image

  • Antidepressant "drugs had a substantial effect on depression beyond that of a placebo for only 15% of patients."

  • "A study published in 2010, which examined research on two common ssris, estimated that for people with less severe depression the odds of improving by taking the drugs were just 6% higher than they were for taking a placebo. "

  • "A review of the research published on that topic, carried out in 2019, found that between 27% and 86% of people attempting to come off antidepressants experienced withdrawal symptoms, and that nearly half of them described those symptoms as severe."

    📄 Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life

Depression and Vitamin D on the web

Depression on the web other than Vitamin D

Mercola and depression

  • 27% of adults are depressed or anxious] Mercola 2022 📄 PDF

  • The Chemical Imbalance Myth and Antidepressant Harm Mercola Sept 2019

    • Peter C. Gøtzsche, a Danish physician-researcher, Gøtzsche helped found the Cochrane Collaboration in 1993

    • Wrote: "Deadly Medicines and Organized Crime: How Big Pharma Has Corrupted Healthcare - 2013

    • Wrote "Survival in an Overmedicated World: Look Up the Evidence Yourself" 2019

    • all of the 22 (depression) papers came to the conclusion that "the drugs were not beneficial in the long term."

  • Mercola 2018 Intro to Depression, with links to details has some on Vitamin D

  • Mercola June 2019

    • "7% of the (US) adult population, experienced at least one major depressive episode in 2017."
    • "...World Health Organization, depression is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide, and increased 18% between 2005 and 2015"
    • "...Among seniors over the age of 65, only 14.3% met the criteria (major depressive episode)
    • "Studies comparing the drugs to placebo found 20 to 40 out of 100 found relief from placebo alone, while 40 to 60 out of 100 reported improvement on an antidepressant after six to eight weeks"

Vitamin D Life - studies in both categories Depression and Pregnancy

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Vitamin D Life - studies in both categories Depression and Omega-3

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items in Depression category

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IRelated categories:Omega-3, Cognitive, Intervention, Pregnancy, Meta-analysis, Stroke, Intervention - non daily, Magnesium, Diabetes, Seniors, etc.

Youth, Bipolar, ADHD, Autism, Women, Parkinson, Cardiovascular, Deficiency, Multiple Sclerosis, Skin - Dark, Headache, Sleep, Infant-Child, Middle East, Inflammation

from most studies to fewest

Close Associations

Anxiety and Vitamin D

17+ Anxiety studies in Vitamin D Life

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Screening proposed for Anxiety Disorders in all US Adults - June 2023

Screening for Anxiety Disorders in Adults - US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement

J. American Medical Association doi:10.1001/jama.2023.9301 📄 Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life

  • For all adults aged 19 - 65

  • Lifetime prevalence of anxiety disorders in (US) adults was 26 % for men and 40 % for women (as of 2002)

  • Anxiety and depressive disorders often overlap . One cohort study found that 67% of individuals with a depressive disorder also had a current anxiety disorder, and 75% had a lifetime comorbid anxiety disorder

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Effectiveness of antidepressant augmentation with vitamin D or omega-3 in pregnant women with depression and/or anxiety - April 2024

📄 PhD dissertation

Is Vitamin D Important in Anxiety or Depression? What Is the Truth? - Sept 2022

Nutrition and the Brain Volume 11, pages 675–681, (2022)

📄 PDF

Association of serum vitamin D with anxiety in US adults: a cross-sectional study - March 2024

Front. Nutr., Sec. Nutrition, Psychology and Brain Health Volume 11 - 2024 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2024.1371170

📄 PDF

Why not just improve health and reduce anxiety in everyone with vitamin D and/or Omega-3?
Tags: Associations Depression Details