Plasma levels of folates, riboflavin, vitamin B6, and ascorbate in severely disturbed children.

The recent upsurge in megavitamin therapy raises questions about the role of vitamin deficiencies and dependencies in mental health. With this in mind, the plasma levels of folic acid, ascorbic acid, pyridoxine, and riboflavin were studied in approximately 125 children admitted to a child psychiatric unit. There were no apparent decreased levels of vitamins in these children in terms of their age, race, or psychiatric diagnosis. It is postulated that vitamin deficiencies per se cannot be proposed as etiological factors in any of the psychiatric deficits represented. Megavitamin therapy, if successful, is not effective due to crrection of vitamin deficiencies as opposed to vitamin dependencies and may be due to the metabolic onus and consequent effects of such heavy doses of vitamins.