The Effect of Vitamin B-Complex Supplement on Salivary Flow Rate, Salivary Viscosity and PH among Post-Menopausal Women: Randomised Trial

Abstract

Background: Vitamin B Supplementation could be a promising and affordable treatment option for adverse hormonal manifestations in the oral cavity for post-menopausal women in Nigeria. This study aimed to determine the effect of vitamin B-complex supplementation in improving salivary flow indices of Unstimulated Salivary Flow rate (USFR), Salivary Viscosity (SRV), and Salivary pH, among postmenopausal women.

Methods: A total of 70 postmenopausal women attending outpatient clinics of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) were recruited into the study and were randomized into two arms: Treatment (35) and Placebo (35). The treatment group received a vitamin B-complex supplement (370mg twice daily) and the control group received a placebo. The respondents were followed up for 4 weeks on a weekly basis. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 24.0 with statistical significance set at p<0.05.

Results: At the end of 4 weeks; there was a significant difference in unstimulated whole salivary flow rate (UWSFR) between the groups (p=0.041) with regression analysis indicating that Vitamin B supplementation and baseline UWSFR were significant predictors of UWSFR. The unstandardized B coefficient indicated a 0.08 gm/min increase in UWSFR in the treatment group (p = 0.023) compared to the placebo group at recall. There was no significant effect of Vitamin B complex in improving SRV. (B=0.014, p=0.865) and salivary pH (p = 0.365).

Conclusion: Vitamin B-complex supplements over 4 weeks significantly improved USFR but did not significantly improve SRV and pH.