The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology
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J. Steroid Biochem. Mol. Biol. · Mar 2018
Randomized Controlled TrialVitamin D and symptoms of depression in overweight or obese adults: A cross-sectional study and randomized placebo-controlled trial.
Recent evidence suggests that vitamin D deficiency may contribute to increased risk of depression. However, previous studies are limited by variability in participant characteristics including vitamin D deficiency status and presence of existing diseases, use of low doses of vitamin D supplementation for short durations, and use of co-interventions or psychotropic drugs. We examined whether 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations were associated with symptoms of depression, as well as whether vitamin D supplementation reduced symptoms of depression in overweight or obese and vitamin D-deficient, but otherwise healthy adults. ⋯ Results remained non-significant after adjusting for multiple covariates including sun exposure, physical activity, and dietary vitamin D intake (all p>0.1). Our findings suggest that vitamin D deficiency may not be related to increased risk of depression in individuals without clinically significant depression and that the use of vitamin D supplementation may not be warranted for reducing depressive symptoms in this population. Further large-scale studies are needed to establish whether vitamin D supplementation may be beneficial for improving depressive symptoms in other population groups, including in those with existing depressive or psychiatric disorders.