OBJECTIVE
To investigate the association between serum vitamin D levels and depression in a
large database of patients from the Cooper Clinic.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
We conducted a cross-sectional study of 12,594 participants seen at the Cooper Clinic
from November 27, 2006, to October 4, 2010. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] was
analyzed, and depression was defined as a Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression
Scale (CES-D) score of 10 or more. Those with and those without a history of depression
represented 2 distinct populations with respect to CES-D scores; accordingly, they
were analyzed separately.
RESULTS
In the total sample, higher vitamin D levels were associated with a significantly
decreased risk [odds ratio, 0.92 (95% confidence interval, 0.87-0.97)] of current
depression based on CES-D scores. The finding was stronger in those with a prior history
of depression [odds ratio, 0.90 (95% confidence interval, 0.82-0.98)] and not significant
in those without a history of depression [odds ratio, 0.95 (95% confidence interval,
0.89-1.02)].
CONCLUSION
We found that low vitamin D levels are associated with depressive symptoms, especially
in persons with a history of depression. These findings suggest that primary care
patients with a history of depression may be an important target for assessment of
vitamin D levels.
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Mayo Clinic ProceedingsAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
REFERENCES
- Cross-national epidemiology of DSM-IV major depressive episode.BMC Med. 2011 Jul 26; 9: 90
- The impact of depression on workplace functioning and disability costs.Am J Manag Care. 2009; 15: S322-S327
- Diagnosis and management of vitamin D deficiency.BMJ. 2010; 340: b5664
- Vitamin D deficiency.N Engl J Med. 2007; 357: 266-281
- Vitamin D and risk of cognitive decline in elderly persons.Arch Intern Med. 2010; 170: 1135-1141
- Vitamin D and neurocognitive dysfunction: preventing “Decline?.Mol Aspects Med. 2008; 29: 415-422
- Serum vitamin D and the risk of Parkinson disease.Arch Neurol. 2010; 67: 808-811
- Distribution of the vitamin D receptor and 1 alpha-hydroxylase in human brain.J Chem Neuroanat. 2005; 29: 21-30
- Neuropathological correlates of late-life depression in older people.Br J Psychiatry. 2011; 198: 109-114
- Vitamin D sites and mechanisms of action: a histochemical perspective: reflections on the utility of autoradiography and cytopharmacology for drug targeting.Histochem Cell Biol. 1995; 104: 417-427
- Calcitriol protects against the dopamine- and serotonin-depleting effects of neurotoxic doses of methamphetamine.Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006; 1074: 261-271
- Is there convincing biological or behavioral evidence linking vitamin D deficiency to brain dysfunction?.FASEB J. 2008; 22: 982-1001
- Circulating MMP9, vitamin D and variation in the TIMP-1 response with VDR genotype: mechanisms for inflammatory damage in chronic disorders?.QJM. 2002; 95: 787-796
- Low vitamin D status is associated with low cord blood levels of the immunosuppressive cytokine interleukin-10.Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2004; 15: 242-246
- Cytokines mediated inflammation and decreased neurogenesis in animal models of depression.Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2011; 35: 760-768
- Swimming behaviour and post-swimming activity in Vitamin D receptor knockout mice.Brain Res Bull. 2006; 69: 74-78
- Vitamin D deficiency is associated with anxiety and depression in fibromyalgia.Clin Rheumatol. 2007; 26: 551-554
- Vitamin D in schizophrenia, major depression and alcoholism.J Neural Transm. 2000; 107: 839-842
- Vitamin D deficiency is associated with low mood and worse cognitive performance in older adults.Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2006; 14: 1032-1040
- Depression is associated with decreased 25-hydroxyvitamin D and increased parathyroid hormone levels in older adults.Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008; 65: 508-512
- Relationship between vitamin D levels and depressive symptoms in older residents from a national survey population.Psychosom Med. 2010; 72: 608-612
- Association between depressive symptoms and 25-hydroxyvitamin D in middle-aged and elderly Chinese.J Affect Disord. 2009; 118: 240-243
- Association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and depressive symptoms in Japanese: analysis by survey season.Eur J Clin Nutr. 2009; 63: 1444-1447
- No associations between serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and parathyroid hormone and depression among US adults.Br J Nutr. 2010; 104: 1696-1702
- Physical fitness and all-cause mortality: a prospective study of healthy men and women.JAMA. 1989; 262: 2395-2401
- Factor structure of the 10-item CES-D scale among community dwelling older adults in Singapore.Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2008; 23: 592-597
- Screening for depression in well older adults: evaluation of a short form of the CES-D (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale).Am J Prev Med. 1994; 10: 77-84
- Health, financial stresses, and life satisfaction affecting late-life depression among older adults: a nationwide, longitudinal survey in Taiwan.Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2010; 50: S34-S38
- The 2011 report on dietary reference intakes for calcium and vitamin D from the Institute of Medicine: what clinicians need to know.J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011; 96: 53-58
- Vitamin D deficiency: a worldwide problem with health consequences.Am J Clin Nutr. 2008; 87: 1080S-1086S
- Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and depressive symptoms in older women and men.J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010; 95: 3225-3233
- Association of vitamin D levels with incident depression among a general cardiovascular population.Am Heart J. 2010; 159: 1037-1043
- Effects of vitamin D supplementation on symptoms of depression in overweight and obese subjects: randomized double blind trial.J Intern Med. 2008; 264: 599-609
- Vitamin D and depressive symptoms in women during the winter: a pilot study.Appl Nurs Res. 2009; 22: 221-225
- Can vitamin D supplementation prevent winter-time blues? A randomised trial among older women.J Nutr Health Aging. 2006; 10: 151-153
Article Info
Footnotes
individual reprints of this article are not available.
Identification
Copyright
© 2011 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
