I live pretty far north. For months at a time here there is basically no sunlight. Sometimes people try to sell you artificial light of one kind or another. Do they work?
Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
51–60 of 221 posts
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#52Interestingly the fix to my seasonal affective disorder was a move a couple years ago into an apartment with no blinds and tons of sun in the morning (our previous place had black out blinds). We never got to adding blinds, and we have no intention to at this point—I wake up with sunrise naturally nowadays around 6am and haven’t had SAD since.
I’m of the impression that black out blinds are generally poor for sleep hygiene (unless you’re in a really bright place and they’re a necessity), as they disrupt some of the most natural and most potent zeitgebers available. That isn’t to say that a knowledgeable and enterprising person couldn’t employ black out blinds when crafting their sleep environment, but most people won’t balance the different influencing factors thoughtfully.
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
For me sunlight and some light exercise everyday were a game changer. I had tried Vitamin D supplements (1000 IU daily) before but there was barely any noticable effect.
I don’t think that’s enough, I needed 5k daily before it started working. My blood tests all come back in the correct range now.
Good to know.
I was diagnosed with low VitD and they said I should take like 1k-2k, but I didn't feel much.
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
5000 IU is really too much. At best 2000, 2500 IU is good.
No, 5000 IU per day is generally considered the highest non megadose. Make sure it is good quality (D3, USP in the US), and it should be fine. Some people say also to take K2 (also make sure it's USP in the US), but I'm not sure the exact supposed mechanism of protection from adverse effects from D3. Something about preventing calcium from leaching from the bones and accumulating in the blood, I think.
"Vitamin D controls the absorption of calcium into the blood. Vitamin K2 controls where that calcium ends up.
"Over-supplementation of vitamin D3 without ample vitamin K2 leads to problems of excess calcium.
"If calcium isn’t laid into bone, it will find itself in other tissues, like your arteries. Calcium in the arteries is BAD. It contributes to atherosclerosis and vessel stiffness."
https://dralexrinehart.com/articles/the-vitamin-d-and-vitami...
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#55Vitamin D supplementation didn't affect my depression. Going for walks to get more sunlight made it worse. I understand that not everything works for everyone and I wish those around me, including my doctor, did as well so they'd stop blaming me when their "cure" doesn't work on me.
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This is what I'm talking about. The idea that "going for a walk and getting sunlight is good for depression" is so universally unchallengable that I must live somewhere terrible if it doesn't work for me.
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sunlight’s effects on body chemistry also have a damping effect on inflammation. It’s a funny thing. Sunlight has an impact on many chemical processes in and on the body. One example: Our skin is coated with a bunch of chemicals. There’s a number of different acidic chemicals. These are known as the “acid mantle”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acid_mantle One of these substances is urocanic acid . The body manufactur…
> That receptor is known to be profoundly immunomodulatory Any change for a layman's explanation on what that means? This seems super fascinating but admittedly above my understanding.
immunomodulatory (immuno-modulatory) = modulates (i.e. controls) the immune system
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#57Daily morning and afternoon exposure to bright light might actually be more important to reducing depression than direct vitamin D supplementation. Low vitamin D might just be an indicator that you are not getting enough sunlight. Sunlight also affects melatonin and serotonin levels, and synchronizes your Circadian rhythm. Not sure why that article doesn't talk about Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), and how bright…
Sunlight’s effects on body chemistry also have a damping effect on inflammation. It’s a funny thing. Sunlight has an impact on many chemical processes in and on the body. One example: Our skin is coated with a bunch of chemicals. There’s a number of different acidic chemicals. These are known as the “acid mantle”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acid_mantle One of these substances is urocanic acid . The body manufactur…
It’s actually quite reasonable and intuitive that an integral part of our environment i.e. the sun is beneficial or at least has modulatory effects on ourselves. It’s too much a reductionist approach to think sunlight -> bad because of it’s immediate associations with some types of skin cancers.
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#58Vitamin D supplementation didn't affect my depression. Going for walks to get more sunlight made it worse. I understand that not everything works for everyone and I wish those around me, including my doctor, did as well so they'd stop blaming me when their "cure" doesn't work on me.
Quoted post unavailable.
There can be underlying anxiety issues that make going out like that quite a stressful event, especially at first, and even traumatic if something bad does end up happening. Or sensory processing issues associated with autism spectrum disorders that make bright sunlight feel unpleasant. Not to downplay the general idea: certainly for most people who feel a little blue, or even crappy enough for long enough to qualify for a diagnosis of major depression, getting out more is likely to be helpful on its own (and that's why therapists generally recommend it). But to the GP's point, the lack of distinction between people with a more ordinary (but quite painful!) set of problems and people with a bunch of comorbidities that they're likely not aware of is really frustrating, especially if they're using the internet to look for ideas and find a bunch of people generalizing the easy fix that cured their depression to the entire population.
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have never felt an affect from oral vitamins in any situation. Sitting in the sun however seems to do more than just “increase vitamin d levels”. The sensation is just overwhelmingly lovely. It seems to reduce cortisol, makes you feel tired in a euphoric way. Animals love to warm their fur in shafts of sunlight too. Perhaps we should be thinking more in terms of joyful activities in general and less trying to bioha…
> Animals love to warm their fur in shafts of sunlight too. Indeed. My dog always lies in the sun for a while when he goes outside. Once he's warm enough, he moves to the shade. Animals know.
My blind cat always seeks sun spots as well!
Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)
#60Daily morning and afternoon exposure to bright light might actually be more important to reducing depression than direct vitamin D supplementation. Low vitamin D might just be an indicator that you are not getting enough sunlight. Sunlight also affects melatonin and serotonin levels, and synchronizes your Circadian rhythm. Not sure why that article doesn't talk about Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), and how bright…
Sunlight’s effects on body chemistry also have a damping effect on inflammation. It’s a funny thing. Sunlight has an impact on many chemical processes in and on the body. One example: Our skin is coated with a bunch of chemicals. There’s a number of different acidic chemicals. These are known as the “acid mantle”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acid_mantle One of these substances is urocanic acid . The body manufactur…
Anecdata: I grew up in LA. I was always relatively healthy. Moved to NYC. Developed autoimmune disease by my 6th year in NYC.
I often wonder if I would have developed the disease if I had stayed in LA.