mortality risk. Folate also plays an important role in maintaining neuronal integrity and lowering levels of homocysteine—which has been linked to etiology of schizophrenia,” the study says.
The strongest evidence was found for vitamin D deficits, and lower vitamin D levels were found to be associated with more severe symptoms in the FEP individuals.
“Given the prevalence of vitamin D deficiencies in long-term schizophrenia and the compelling evidence for low vitamin D status during brain development being linked to schizophrenia onset, it is perhaps unsurprising that FEP is associated with lower vitamin D,” according to the study.
“However, the extent of the deficit in FEP samples compared to the general population observed in this meta-analysis is troubling, especially considering that vitamin D levels are often low even among healthy adults, with 20%–40% of young adults in UK population showing insufficiencies.”
Clearly, more in-depth studies are necessary to further determine the true impact a lack of nutrients has on the human brain. However, what we do