Vitamin drips: hype or benefit?

What is proven: infusions make sense when the gut does not absorb nutrients sufficiently or a deficiency must be corrected quickly – with proven vitamin B12 deficiency and absorption disorder, severe iron deficiency (iron infusion), after bariatric surgery, with inflammatory bowel disease or heavy fluid loss. Here the effect is undisputed.

Where the evidence is thin: for healthy people without deficiency there are no robust studies that vitamin infusions improve energy, immune system, skin or ageing. Excess water-soluble vitamins are excreted by the kidneys. The 'glow' after the drip is mostly the fluid itself and a placebo effect – not nothing, but no argument for 150 euros a week.

High-dose vitamin C: antioxidant, studied as a supplement in infections and exhaustion with mixed results. Dangerous with G6PD deficiency (haemolysis), problematic with kidney stones. No replacement for cancer or infection therapy.

Risks: small but real: allergic reactions (especially vitamin B1), vein irritation, overdose of fat-soluble vitamins, electrolyte shifts. Hence: medical history, blood values, test dose, slow infusion with monitoring. Drips in lounges or at home without a physician are risk without benefit.

The honest recommendation: first a blood count (ferritin, B12, vitamin D, zinc, magnesium). With deficiency: targeted substitution – orally if possible; as infusion if necessary. Without deficiency: sleep, nutrition, exercise – more boring but more effective.

At VIVA DERM: infusions are offered after a medical history and, where possible, with blood values. Anyone wanting a drip without indication gets an honest assessment – and sometimes a no.