A daily multivitamin supplement may enhance mood and energy, according to new research conducted at Swinburne University of Technology.
The study is believed to be the first to examine the subjective experience of taking a multivitamin during a clinical trial.
The Swinburne Centre for Human Psychopharmacology’s study of the commercial product Swisse Ultivite F1 formulations found that people who took a daily multivitamin felt they had more energy and experienced better mood.
Participants also reported better sleep.
“There is much traditional evidence of the actions of vitamins and minerals on physiology and health, however there is a paucity of randomised controlled clinical trials examining the effects of multivitamins on brain health,” chief investigator of the large multivitamin clinical trial Dr Andrew Pipingas said.
“The results of this study, taken together with a recently published Meta-Analysis, suggest that multivitamins may help with enhancing energy and mood.”
The study is part of a larger trial investigating the effects of taking a multivitamin supplement over a period of four months in 20-50 year olds, assessing cognition, mood, stress and other health outcomes.
One hundred and fourteen participants – both male and female – completed the study. Half took a multivitamin (the Swisse Men’s or Women’s Ultivite F1 formulations) and the other half took a placebo supplement.
Neither the participants nor the study investigators who tested them knew what they were taking – multivitamin or placebo.
At the end of the four month period the participants were asked open ended questions about how they felt during the supplementation period in terms of any positive, negative or unusual experiences.
When the researchers compared the experiences, they found significant increased energy and enhanced mood in the multivitamin group compared to the placebo group, with participants reporting feeling more energetic and alert and in a better emotional state. No negative effects were reported.
This study, published in Nutrition Journal, is the first paper of a number of papers to be published from the trial.
It was funded by Swisse Vitamins Pty Ltd. (Lea Kivivali/Swinburne University of Technology)
