ArticleJournal of nutrition and metabolism2013
Vitamin B12, folate, homocysteine, and bone health in adults and elderly people: a systematic review with meta-analyses.
Article in Journal of nutrition and metabolism, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 52 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
52 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 113 citations in OpenAlex.
- B vitamins and bone health: a meta-analysis with trial sequential analysis of randomized controlled trials.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2024Pooled it
- Malnutrition Prevalence and Nutrient Intakes of Indonesian Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Systematic Review of Observational Studies.Frontiers in nutrition · 2022Pooled it
- Micronutrient intakes and potential inadequacies of community-dwelling older adults: a systematic review.The British journal of nutrition · 2015Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Effects of Two-Year Vitamin BNutrients · 2016Trial
- A Randomized Controlled Trial to Examine the Effect of 2-Year Vitamin B12 and Folic Acid Supplementation on Physical Performance, Strength, and Falling: Additional Findings from the B-PROOF Study.Calcified tissue international · 2016Trial
- Article
- Folate and global health review series, part 4: syntheses on folate and autoimmune diseases and skeletal outcomes.Journal of global health · 2026Review
- Gut-bone axis: mechanisms and intervention effects of Chinese botanical drugs in osteoporosis management.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Genetically informed causal links between gut microbiota and bone mass: pleiotropy and metabolic mediation.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet and change in cognitive functioning in older adults.European journal of nutrition · 2025Article
- Mapping the role of macro and micronutrients in bone mineral density: a comprehensive Mendelian randomization study.European journal of nutrition · 2025Article
- Review
- Interconnected Pathways of Alzheimer's Disease and Osteoporosis: A Review of Genetic, Hormonal, and Environmental Influences.Aging and disease · 2025Review
- [Etiopathogenetic features of bone metabolism in patients with diabetes mellitus and Charcot foot].Problemy endokrinologii · 2024Review
- Article
- The association between adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet and cognitive ageing.Age and ageing · 2024Article
- Nutrition-Based Support for Osteoporosis in Postmenopausal Women: A Review of Recent Evidence.International journal of women's health · 2024Review
- Associations of serum vitamin B12 and its biomarkers with musculoskeletal health in middle-aged and older adults.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2024Article
- Effects of vitamin B12 in culture medium for calcified nodule formation by rat dental pulp cells.Journal of dental sciences · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Elevated homocysteine levels and low vitamin B12 and folate levels have been associated with deteriorated bone health. This systematic literature review with dose-response meta-analyses summarizes the available scientific evidence on associations of vitamin B12, folate, and homocysteine status with fractures and bone mineral density (BMD). Twenty-seven eligible cross-sectional (n = 14) and prospective (n = 13) observational studies and one RCT were identified. Meta-analysis on four prospective studies including 7475 people showed a modest decrease in fracture risk of 4% per 50 pmol/L increase in vitamin B12 levels, which was borderline significant (RR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.92 to 1.00). Meta-analysis of eight studies including 11511 people showed an increased fracture risk of 4% per μ mol/L increase in homocysteine concentration (RR = 1.04, 95% CI = 1.02 to 1.07). We could not draw a conclusion regarding folate levels and fracture risk, as too few studies investigated this association. Meta-analyses regarding vitamin B12, folate and homocysteine levels, and BMD were possible in female populations only and showed no associations. Results from studies regarding BMD that could not be included in the meta-analyses were not univocal.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.