Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41923913›Full record

SynthesisFrontiers in nutrition2026

Efficacy of vitamin D supplementation in patients diagnosed with depression: a dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Hsuan-Hsien Liu, Ting-Hui Liu, Chia-Yu Liu, Jheng-Yan Wu, Chien-Ho Lin, Chih-Cheng Lai

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Frontiers in nutrition, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Hsuan-Hsien Liu *Department of General Medicine, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Ting-Hui Liu *Department of Psychiatry, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan.
Chia-Yu LiuDepartment of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Jheng-Yan WuDepartment of Nutrition, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan.
Chien-Ho LinDepartment of Psychiatry, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan.
Chih-Cheng LaiDepartment of Intensive Care Medicine, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Depression affects 5% of the global population, posing significant health and economic challenges. Objectives: This study evaluates the efficacy of vitamin D supplementation in reducing depressive symptoms and explores its dose-response relationship. Methods: We used PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library to identify randomized controlled trials using the keyword combination of vitamin D and depression from inception to June 2024. The primary outcome was the change in depressive symptoms. A dose-response meta-analysis using restricted cubic splines was conducted to explore potential sources of heterogeneity and examine the dose-response relationship. Results: The outcomes were reported in 15 studies encompassing data from 962 participants. Vitamin D supplementation demonstrated a significant improvement in depressive symptoms compared to the placebo group (SMD: -0.98; 95% CI - 1.28 to -0.68; Conclusion: Our findings from this systematic review and meta-analysis indicated that vitamin D supplementation may be an effective adjunctive therapy for improving depressive symptoms. The observed reductions in serum PTH and TNFα levels suggest anti-inflammatory mechanisms underlying its antidepressant effects. Higher daily doses, particularly around 5,000 IU, were associated with greater symptom improvement within the studied populations.

Indexed as

depressiondose–responsemeta-analyzerandomized clinical trialvitamin D

Identifiers

PMID41923913
PMCPMC13035762

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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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.