The effect of vitamin D supplementation on depressive symptoms in adults: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials

Study answer

What this study found

Vitamin D supplementation was associated with a small-to-moderate reduction in depressive symptoms overall. The pooled effect at the end of supplementation was Hedges' g = -0.317, 95% CI [-0.405, -0.230], p < 0.001, with substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 88.16%). Effects were larger in major depressive disorder (g = -0.729, 95% CI [-1.100, -0.358]) and perinatal mothers (g = -0.930, 95% CI [-1.229, -0.632]), while healthy participants showed little to no benefit (g = 0.043, 95% CI [0.025, 0.061]). Larger effects were reported with shorter duration, higher daily doses, and in participants with…

Study & population

Systematic review and meta-analysis of 41 randomized controlled trials in 53,235 adults.

Intervention

Vitamin D supplementation was tested, most commonly as oral cholecalciferol, with some trials using ergocalciferol or calcitriol and a few using intramuscular administration.

Key limitation

Evidence certainty was very low, and the pooled results were highly heterogeneous.

View full study detailsView sourceOpen PDF

Original abstract