Vitamin D for Depression

July 19, 2010

Vitamin D for Depression - Low Levels Make It Worst Study Shows

It is not difficult to imagine that low levels of essential vitamins can affect your overall health. Vitamin D is known as the "sunshine vitamin" since exposing your skin to sunlight causes the formation of vitamin D. This vitamin does a lot in our body and you do not want to be deficient.

A new study shows that older men and women with lower levels of vitamin D seem to be more likely to become depressed as they aged.

The study involved 531 women and 423 men aged 65 and older. They were followed for 6 years afterwards.

This study did not look at whether taking vitamin D supplements could reduce the risk of depression, but expect more study to be done on this critical vitamin.

What is your recommendation?

Unless you get your blood levels of vitamin D measured to find out if you are deficient, taking a daily vitamin D supplement is the best insurance policy against this.

Some would suggest sun exposure as a natural method of getting vitamin but there are risks as well such as not enough exposure or too much, thus increasing the risk of skin cancer.

We recommend taking at least 1,000 IU daily. Higher dose may be used safely but consult with a healthcare professional first.