Association between Serum Vitamin Levels and Depression in U.S. Adults 20 Years or Older Based on National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005–2006

Abstract

Depression is one of the leading causes of disability around the world. Although several studies have been conducted to analyze the association between vitamins and depression, the results have been inconsistent. Based on the database of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (2005–2006), a cross-sectional analysis was conducted to uncover the correlations between serum vitamin concentrations and depression in 2791 participants over 20 years of age. Vitamin concentrations in serum were measured by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), a standardized liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) or radioassay kit method. A nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess depression symptoms. The binary logistic regression model was applied to analyze the association between vitamins and depression. In the whole population, negative associations were discovered between folate concentrations (p for trend = 0.02), trans-β-carotene (p for trend = 0.01) and depression, while positive associations were found among vitamin B12 concentrations (p for trend = 0.008), vitamin A concentrations (p for trend = 0.01) and depression. In order to evaluate the influence of gender on the pathogenesis of depression of vitamins exposure, we performed gender-stratified analysis. In females, folate concentrations (p for trend = 0.03) and vitamin B12 concentrations (p for trend = 0.02) were correlated with depression. In males, no significant association was found between depression and serum vitamin concentrations. The correlation of vitamins with depression deserves further investigation in larger and diverse populations, especially in females.

Lower Depression Scores among Walnut Consumers in NHANES

“…NHANES data has been used in a few publications of diet and depression previously. One of them used serum carotenoid levels as biomarkers of vegetable consumption and found significant trends among women but not men, using PHQ-9-determined symptomatology [14]. Just as depression and the use of anti-depressives are significantly greater among women than men, the magnitude of the effect of walnut consumption is greater among women than among men in our findings.…”

“…A growing understanding of the brain–gut connections is revealing pathways by which food choices may affect mood. A number of studies have focused on specific vitamins [ 4 , 14 , 15 , 16 ] and minerals [ 17 ]. A few have looked at individual fatty acid families [ 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

The relationship between nutritional deficiencies and mental health

“…Studies on the association between dietary antioxidants and depression show that the intake of vitamin C and betacarotene are lower in individuals with depression compared to controls 20,21 and suggest that beta-carotene could be demia de COVID-19. El estudio se realizó para demostrar el efecto de las deficiencias nutricionales sobre la ocurrencia y/o agravamiento de problemas de salud mental, principalmente relacionados con las medidas más drásticas de distanciamiento social durante la pandemia COVID-19.…”

Associação Entre O Nível Insuficiente De Atividade Física, Fatores Psicossociais E Hábitos Alimentares Em Adolescentes/ Association Between Insufficient Level of Physical Activity, Psychosocial Factors and Eating Habits in Adolescents

“…Uma possível hipótese para este fenômeno são as fibras alimentares que compõem nesses alimentos e alteram a composição da flora intestinal(34), regulando o estresse oxidativo(35) e, em consequência disso, influencia a função cerebral devido a comunicação com o sistema nervoso central (36). Além disso, a presença dos antioxidantes como vitamina C e E, ácido fólico e carotenoides presente nesses alimentos (37) . Já a atividade física traz muitos benefícios para a saúde mental como condicionamento físico e bem-estar (38).…”