Effect of long-term supplementation with folic acid and B vitamins on risk of depression in older women

Abstract

Background Homocysteine-lowering nutrients may have preventive/ameliorative roles in depression. Aims To test whether long-term B-vitamin/folate supplementation reduces depression risk. Method Participants were 4,331 women (mean age=63.6 years), without prior depression, from the Women’s Antioxidant and Folic Acid Cardiovascular Study – a randomized controlled trial of cardiovascular disease prevention among 5,442 women. Participants were randomly assigned to receive a combination of folic acid (2.5 mg/d), vitamin B6 (50 mg/d) and vitamin B12 (1 mg/d) or a matching placebo. Average treatment duration=7 years. The outcome was incident depression, defined as self-reported physician/clinician-diagnosed depression or clinically significant depressive symptoms. Results There were 524 incident cases. There was no difference between active vs. placebo groups in depression risk (adjusted relative risk=1.02 (95% confidence interval: 0.86–1.21; p=0.81), despite significant homocysteine level reduction. Conclusion Long-term, high-dose, daily supplementation with folic acid and vitamins B6 and B12 did not reduce overall depression risk in mid-life and older women.

Effect of Folate Supplementation on Inflammatory Markers in Individuals Susceptible to Depression: A Systematic Review

“…Overall, these trials found there was no correlation between a reduction in Hcy and depressive symptoms. Interestingly, in contrast to the study by Coppen et al, 68 the trial by Okereke et al 72 found that a reduction in Hcy did not reduce depressive symptoms in women in comparison with placebo. This was a large trial with only female participants (n = 4331), used a relatively high FA dosage (2.5 mg/day), and was conducted for 7.3 years; therefore, the findings suggested that the conclusion reached by Coppen et al 68 may have been confounded by other factors.…”

“…In a similarly large trial (n = 4331), Okereke et al 72 studied the effect of supplementing 2.5 mg FA, 50 mg vitamin B 6 71 depression was a secondary outcome (CVD was the primary outcome), and it was determined using the Mental Health Inventory. Despite a reduction in Hcy levels in the supplementation group, there was no significant effect on depressive symptoms in comparison to placebo (relative risk: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.86-1.21; p = 0.81).…”

A prospective evaluation of the depression–nutrient intake reverse causality hypothesis in a cohort of community-dwelling older Canadians

“…Randomised, placebo-controlled trials have been conducted and found no clear effect of B-vitamin supplementation on seniors' affective health (51)(52)(53)(54)(55)(56)(57) . It then leaves the question of whether B-vitamins from food have different associations with health (58) possibly their synergistic effect with other nutrients -partially the reason for the increasing interest in dietary patterns (59) -or certain lifestyle factors (30,60) or social determinants of health (61) .…”

Vitamin B12 ve depresyon - anksiyete bozukluklukları ilişkisi: Retrospektif kohort çalışma

“…Bir başka çalışmada ise, uzun süreli vitamin B6 ve vitamin B12 desteği verilen orta yaş ve yaşlı kadınlar incelenmiş ve bu vitamin desteğinin depresyon riskini düşürmediği saptanmıştır [22]. Hinttika ve arkadaşlarının [23] yaptığı çalışmada vitamin B12 ve folat düzeylerinin bakıldığı majör depresif bozukluğu olan hastalarda, vitamin B12 seviyesi yüksek olanların daha iyi klinik durumları olduğu ancak 6 aylık takiplerinde belirgin bir değişiklik saptanmadığı belirtilmiştir.…”