Depression Linked To Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D deficiencies, which have been associated with a wide variety of diseases and disorders, have now been linked to depression, a U.S. study finds. Researchers examined data from 12,600 participants from late 2006 to late 2010. Higher vitamin D levels were associated with a significantly decreased risk of current depression, particularly among people with a prior history of depression. Low vitamin D levels were associated with depressive symptoms, particularly those with a history of depression. The study did not address whether increasing vitamin D levels reduced depressive symptoms. But the researchers say their findings suggest that screening for depression in people with low vitamin D levels “might be useful.”