SynthesisBMC psychiatry2020
The neuropsychiatric effects of vitamin C deficiency: a systematic review.
Synthesis in BMC psychiatry, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 54 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
54 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 119 citations in OpenAlex.
- A comprehensive review on the co-occurrence of scurvy and anorexia nervosa.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- A quantitative meta-analysis of vitamin C in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- Trial
- [Gulliver travels into psychosis-inspired by Dean Swift's own experience].Neuropsychiatrie : Klinik, Diagnostik, Therapie und Rehabilitation : Organ der Gesellschaft Osterreichischer Nervenarzte und Psychiater · 2026Article
- Sociodemographic Characteristics and Dietary Habits Associated with Generalized Anxiety Disorder Symptoms in Adults Living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Large Cross-Sectional Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Review
- Epigenetic Modulation by Vitamin C and in Prenatal Depression: Implications for Offspring Health.Current medical science · 2026Review
- Influence of micronutrients on anxiety and depression in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Threshold Effects of Maternal Vitamin C in Late Pregnancy on Infant Social Competence: A Nonlinear Dose-Response Analysis in a Birth Cohort.Food science & nutrition · 2026Article
- Interplay between B vitamins, fiber, andFrontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- Vitamin C and Benzoic Acid Intake in Patients with Kidney Disease: Is There Risk of Benzene Exposure?Nutrients · 2025Review
- Vitamin C status across the spectrum of chronic kidney disease and healthy controls: a cross-sectional study.The American journal of clinical nutrition · 2025Article
- Vitamin C Deficiency Megaloblastic Anemia Mimicking Hemolytic Anemia.Internal medicine (Tokyo, Japan) · 2025Article
- Oral-Gut Microbiota Crosstalk and Epigenetic Targets in Metabolic and Neuropsychiatric Diseases.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Association Between the Jiangnan Diet and Mild Cognitive Impairment Among the Elderly.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Plant-Based and Plant-Predominant Diets Among Healthcare Students: A Systematic Review.Cureus · 2025Review
- The Community Prevalence of Vitamin C Deficiency and Inadequacy-How Does Australia Compare With Other Nations? A Scoping Review.Health science reports · 2025Review
- Vitamin C Protects from Impairment of Memory Induced by E-Cigarette Aerosol Exposure.Current neuropharmacology · 2025Article
- Case Report: Scurvy-a modifiable cause of psychiatric refractoriness and lithium pharmacokinetic abnormalities in autism.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundVitamin C deficiency may be more common than is generally assumed, and the association between vitamin C deficiency and adverse psychiatric effects has been known for centuries. This paper aims to systematically review the evidence base for the neuropsychiatric effects of vitamin C deficiency.
methodsRelevant studies were identified via systematic literature review.
resultsNine studies of vitamin C deficiency, including subjects both with and without the associated physical manifestations of scurvy, were included in this review. Vitamin C deficiency, including scurvy, has been linked to depression and cognitive impairment. No effect on affective or non-affective psychosis was identified.
conclusionsDisparate measurement techniques for vitamin C, and differing definitions of vitamin C deficiency were apparent, complicating comparisons between studies. However, there is evidence suggesting that vitamin C deficiency is related to adverse mood and cognitive effects. The vitamin C blood levels associated with depression and cognitive impairment are higher than those implicated in clinical manifestations of scurvy. While laboratory testing for ascorbic acid can be practically difficult, these findings nonetheless suggest that mental health clinicians should be alerted to the possibility of vitamin C deficiency in patients with depression or cognitive impairment. Vitamin C replacement is inexpensive and easy to deliver, although as of yet there are no outcome studies investigating the neuropsychiatric impact of vitamin C replacement in those who are deficient.
Indexed as
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What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.