Zinc, Magnesium, Selenium and Depression: A Review of the Evidence, Potential Mechanisms and Implications - PubMed (original) (raw)
Review
Zinc, Magnesium, Selenium and Depression: A Review of the Evidence, Potential Mechanisms and Implications
Jessica Wang et al. Nutrients. 2018.
Abstract
Micronutrient deficiency and depression are major global health problems. Here, we first review recent empirical evidence of the association between several micronutrients—zinc, magnesium, selenium—and depression. We then present potential mechanisms of action and discuss the clinical implications for each micronutrient. Collectively, empirical evidence most strongly supports a positive association between zinc deficiency and the risk of depression and an inverse association between zinc supplementation and depressive symptoms. Less evidence is available regarding the relationship between magnesium and selenium deficiency and depression, and studies have been inconclusive. Potential mechanisms of action involve the HPA axis, glutamate homeostasis and inflammatory pathways. Findings support the importance of adequate consumption of micronutrients in the promotion of mental health, and the most common dietary sources for zinc and other micronutrients are provided. Future research is needed to prospectively investigate the association between micronutrient levels and depression as well as the safety and efficacy of micronutrient supplementation as an adjunct treatment for depression.
Keywords: depression; diet; magnesium; microbiota; micronutrient; nutrition; selenium; zinc.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
Similar articles
- Micronutrient supplementation in adults with HIV infection.
Visser ME, Durao S, Sinclair D, Irlam JH, Siegfried N. Visser ME, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 May 18;5(5):CD003650. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003650.pub4. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017. PMID: 28518221 Free PMC article. Review. - Micronutrient deficiencies and anemia among preschool children in rural Vietnam.
Van Nhien N, Khan NC, Ninh NX, Van Huan P, Hop le T, Lam NT, Ota F, Yabutani T, Hoa VQ, Motonaka J, Nishikawa T, Nakaya Y. Van Nhien N, et al. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2008;17(1):48-55. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2008. PMID: 18364326 - Prevalence of multiple micronutrient deficiencies amongst pregnant women in a rural area of Haryana.
Pathak P, Kapil U, Kapoor SK, Saxena R, Kumar A, Gupta N, Dwivedi SN, Singh R, Singh P. Pathak P, et al. Indian J Pediatr. 2004 Nov;71(11):1007-14. doi: 10.1007/BF02828117. Indian J Pediatr. 2004. PMID: 15572822 Review. - Micronutrient supplementation in children and adults with HIV infection.
Irlam JH, Visser MM, Rollins NN, Siegfried N. Irlam JH, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010 Dec 8;(12):CD003650. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003650.pub3. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010. PMID: 21154354 Updated. Review. - Micronutrient supplementation in pregnant women with HIV infection.
Siegfried N, Irlam JH, Visser ME, Rollins NN. Siegfried N, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012 Mar 14;(3):CD009755. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD009755. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012. PMID: 22419344 Review.
Cited by
- Associations Between Cardiovascular Health (Life's Essential 8) and Mental Disorders.
Xu Y, Ning W, Zhang Y, Ba Y, Liu H, Liu L, Wang L, Guo C, Xu H, Weng S, Zhou Z, Cai Z, Ma H, Zhang G, Jia Y, Han X. Xu Y, et al. Clin Cardiol. 2024 Sep;47(9):e70019. doi: 10.1002/clc.70019. Clin Cardiol. 2024. PMID: 39314085 Free PMC article. - Association of dietary antioxidant intake with depression risk and all-cause mortality in people with prediabetes.
Peng C, Fang MS. Peng C, et al. Sci Rep. 2024 Aug 28;14(1):20009. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-71152-5. Sci Rep. 2024. PMID: 39198551 Free PMC article. - Progress and trends of research on mineral elements for depression.
Gao B, Li C, Qu Y, Cai M, Zhou Q, Zhang Y, Lu H, Tang Y, Li H, Shen H. Gao B, et al. Heliyon. 2024 Jul 31;10(15):e35469. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35469. eCollection 2024 Aug 15. Heliyon. 2024. PMID: 39170573 Free PMC article. - In Males with Adequate Dietary Needs Who Present No Sleep Disturbances, Is an Acute Intake of Zinc Magnesium Aspartate, Following Either Two Consecutive Nights of 8 or 4 h of Sleep Deprivation, Beneficial for Sleep and Morning Stroop Interference Performance?
Edwards BJ, Adam RL, Gallagher C, Germaine M, Hulton AT, Pullinger SA, Chester NJ. Edwards BJ, et al. Behav Sci (Basel). 2024 Jul 22;14(7):622. doi: 10.3390/bs14070622. Behav Sci (Basel). 2024. PMID: 39062445 Free PMC article. - Adults with depressive symptoms have lower odds of dietary supplement use.
Meshkat S, Tassone VK, Pang H, Wu M, Jung H, Lou W, Bhat V. Meshkat S, et al. PLoS One. 2024 May 8;19(5):e0302637. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0302637. eCollection 2024. PLoS One. 2024. PMID: 38718014 Free PMC article.
References
- Sijbesma F., Sheeran J. Micronutrients, Macro Impact: The Story of Vitamins and a Hungry World. [(accessed on 1 June 2017)];2011 Waldkirch: Sight and Life. Available online: http://www.sightandlife.org/fileadmin/data/Books/Micronutrients_Macro_Im....
- Depression. [(accessed on 1 June 2017)]; Available online: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs369/en/
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
- R25 ES021649/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States
- K01 ES015877/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States
- R01 ES018858/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States
- P30 ES013508/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States
- K02 ES019878/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical