Depression is a common and disabling mental illness that does not discriminate when it comes to age, race or gender. Research conducted by Boston University in 2020, reported that depression rates tripled during the first year of the pandemic. The pre-pandemic rates of depression were around 8% of the U.S. population and in March/April of 2020, the rate had jumped to 28%. Perhaps like us, you’ve heard that people who are depressed can have low levels of Vitamin D. Several studies have found that people diagnosed with a depressive disorder have low Vitamin D levels. Could taking a Vitamin D supplement help with depression?
Symptoms of Low Vitamin D
Low levels of Vitamin D mirror common symptoms of depression. WebMD highlights several of these common symptoms in their article, “What to Know About Vitamin D and Mental Health”, these symptoms include:
- Mood changes
- Feelings of hopelessness and/or helplessness
- Sadness
- Fatigued
- Loss of interest in activities that you previously enjoyed
- Suicidal thoughts
- Anxiety
- Loss of appetite
- Excessive weight loss or gain
- Issues with sleep
For comparison, we’ve listed out several depressive symptoms listed in the DSM-5-TR. Be sure to take note of the number of similarities.
- Depressed mood
- Loss of interest or pleasure in almost all activities
- Significant weight loss or gain (more than 5% in a month)
- Sleep disturbances
- Psychomotor changes
- Tiredness, fatigue, or low energy, or decreased efficiency with which routine tasks are completed.
- A sense of worthlessness or excessive, inappropriate, or delusional guilt.
- Impaired ability to think, concentrate, or make decisions.
- Recurrent thoughts of death, suicidal ideation or attempts.
Do Low Levels of Vitamin D Cause Depression or Is It A Coincidence?
As you can see from the two lists of symptoms above, there is a lot of common ground and it doesn’t mean that there is a causal relationship between the two. Some possible explanations are that depressed individuals can tend to isolate and withdraw socially, causing them to spend less time outside. If their Vitamin D levels are already low this would then mean they are getting less and less of a chance to naturally absorb more from the sun. Depression can also make it difficult for people to get out of bed. Social isolation, physical stagnation and a decrease in self-care (not eating well) could also worsen the lower Vitamin D level.
How Vitamin D Works in The Body
Believe it or not, Vitamin D impacts several aspects of your body’s functioning. Our bodies need Vitamin D to properly function. Your muscles, heart, brain and immune system all have Vitamin D receptors. Our bodies take Vitamin D and transport it to the kidneys and liver where it is converted into a hormone. This helps the body absorb and metabolize calcium.
How to Get Vitamin D
We can naturally absorb Vitamin D through sun exposure and by eating certain foods. Even a healthy habit such as protecting your skin by putting on sunblock, interferes with our ability to absorb Vitamin D when outside. Harvard School of Public Health states that correctly applied sunscreen can reduce vitamin absorption by more than 90%. Here are a few other things that can interfere with our ability to absorb Vitamin D: wearing full clothing that covers skin, spending limited time outdoors, people with darker skin tones have a higher amount of melanin which acts as a natural sunscreen, people who are older tend to spend more time indoors, and living in areas that experience weather extremes (extreme cold in the winter or extreme heat in the summer) that can encourages individuals to stay indoors.
Certain foods and supplements can be great sources of Vitamin D. According to Harvard’s School of Public Health, here are a list of foods that can be a good source of Vitamin D:
- Cod liver oil
- Salmon
- Swordfish
- Tuna
- Orange Juice
- Dairy and plant milks fortified with Vitamin D
- Sardines
- Beef Liver
- Egg yolks
So, which came first, the depression or the lower Vitamin D level? We aren’t 100% sure. Vitamin D has been linked to depression, PMDD and cognitive impairments in older adults. What we do know is that it can be helpful to take a supplement. As always, consult with a physician before you begin taking supplements.
Why is a mental health practice talking about addressing my physical health?
Taking care of your mental health is just as important as your physical health. We can get caught up in the process of only checking in on our physical health when something is wrong and the same pattern tends to manifest when it comes to mental health.
As a therapy practice, we see a lot of clients in a state of needing and wanting immediate relief. We completely understand. As mental health providers, it can be difficult to see someone suffering and tell them that the immediate relief they desire is not always possible. Just like going to the doctor for an illness, even if you get medicine, it still takes time to work.
Therapy is the same way. It takes time to walk our way out of the places that we’ve slowly and unknowingly walked into. Doing the work in therapy is what helps people get better AND there is nothing more frustrating for a client than doing the work over-and-over only to find that nothing is changing. This is why we encourage all clients to get regular checks on their physical health to work in tandem with the effort going toward their mental health. Each can have a positive impact on the other.