Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

181–190 of 221 posts

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#181

Post by dheera »

lordentropy wrote: post #12

Daily 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…

If I owned a health insurance company I'd be subsiding rents for people to move to apartments with better sunlight. It would very directly save money.

I'd also cut premiums and copays for people who exercise regularly and track it.

Maybe even give free national park passes and gym memberships to patients.

All this stuff costs pennies compared to the cost of the various treatments that people are needing these days.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#182

Post by watwut »

alliao wrote: post #147
supertofu wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

people in the past would grab a small jar full of dirt from home and drink it whenever countering some ailment, I actually think that'd still work due to the recent researches on gut bacterial and it's influences on immune system and all...

I never heard or read about this and I used to read about past practices a lot. Who, when and where? I mean, which social class, which place and period and how prevalent it was?

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#183

Post by MrYellowP »

lordentropy wrote: post #12

Daily 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…

> Daily morning and afternoon exposure to bright light might actually be more important to reducing depression than direct vitamin D supplementation.

I don't understand how this is even a question. It's like people have no idea what's doing them good. Sure, I understand that scientific evidence is helpful, but this isn't particularly rocket science?

The difference between being in the sun and taking vitaminD is perceivable. Taking vitaminD doesn't make one feel better even to a fraction of how one feels after hours in the sun.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#184

Post by MrDresden »

afr0ck wrote: post #155
noneeeed wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yurp. I live in the south of England and even here I take vit D for pretty much that time period or I end up with little to no energy. I always make sure to go outside as much as I can, but when the sun is coming up at 8am and has gone down by 6pm it's pretty hard to get enough daylight and also work.

Worse in Edinburgh. Sunset is at 4pm for god's sake.

Greetings from Reykjavík Iceland

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#185

Post by ceasesurthinko »

lordentropy wrote: post #12

Daily 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…

Good example of correlation and not causation.

I think you are definitely onto something here. I used to take 10k IU vitamin D a day and still felt meh, but getting a bright ass white light (2300 lumens) in my room has uplifted my mood, increased wakefulness, and boosted my general productivity alot. I used to have a warm Phillips Hue and I couldn't do any work in my room without wanting to nap.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#186

Post by aliswe »

jimhefferon wrote: post #51

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?

Try for cheap! Buy a floodlight ($15?) and use it as your main light when eating breakfast, for example.

For me this had a huge impact - I use it as above my computer desk at home.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#187

Post by alleskleber »

stjohnswarts wrote: post #75
alleskleber wrote: post #38

Earlier 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.

1000 is actually way below what you need probably, my doc put me on 2500 a day and it wasn't enough, I've moved to 5000 and been "normal" level ever since for several years for my annual checkout/blood/urine tests. If you have brown/black skin it can be even more, but better to start low and figure out what is enough under observation of a doctor.

Yes, probably. I didn't feel comfortable with a higher dose without doctor supervision.

> If you have brown/black skin it can be even more

My skin happens to be very light so sunburn is more of a concern. The evening hours are pretty safe though.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#188

Post by 7952 »

refurb wrote: post #168
BiteCode_dev wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And yet lots of dermatologists will tell you to avoid sunlight. The medical community is full of contradictions.

Human biology is made up a number of interacting systems, negative and positive feedback loops and other biochemical pathways. If you focus on individual mechanisms, it looks like contradictions, but as a whole it makes sense. Sunlight is beneficial for vitamin D production, but harmful when it comes to UV damage. Both can be true and not contradictory.

And in terms of evolution it makes sense. A lack of vitamin d early in life could effect reproductive success. Skin cancer in your fifties not so much. There just isn't selective pressure.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#189

Post by refurb »

7952 wrote: post #188
refurb wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Human biology is made up a number of interacting systems, negative and positive feedback loops and other biochemical pathways. If you focus on individual mechanisms, it looks like contradictions, but as a whole it makes sense. Sunlight is beneficial for vitamin D production, but harmful when it comes to UV damage. Both can be true and not contradictory.

And in terms of evolution it makes sense. A lack of vitamin d early in life could effect reproductive success. Skin cancer in your fifties not so much. There just isn't selective pressure.

Another factor to layer on as well!

As humans developed, evolution didn't have to create the optimal system, just a system that gets the organism to reproductive years. After that? Irrelevant.

That could point to the challenge of fixing diseases of aging. A good analogy is programming - if the program you came up with uses 8 bit variables, and that limitation causes problems later, well, you're going to have to start from scratch to fix it.

Re: Vitamin D and Depression (2020)

#190

Post by afr0ck »

danamit wrote: post #108
lordentropy wrote: post #12

Daily 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…

Would wearing glasses, specially blue light blocking glasses make sun's effect on your circadian rhythm less pronounced?

That's interesting. I have Myopia and I permanantly put glasses with Bkue light blocking. I always had trouble with my circadian rythm and very often I find it extremely hard to have a fixed sleeping schedule, let alone sleeping early. I wonder if that has smthng to do with it. I also live in a northern country where the sun is a very rare event, especially during the winter.
Post reply on HN