Vitamin IV Hydration Therapy: What Is It and Does It Really Work?

One of the few controlled clinical studies that looked at IV vitamin therapy compared to a placebo found that patients with fibromyalgia reported less tenderness and pain after receiving a specific infusion called a Myers’ cocktail, a mix of magnesium, calcium, and vitamins C and B invented by a physician named John Myers.

But here’s the catch: Patients in the study who were injected with just saline solution reported the same positive results — a sign of “a strong placebo effect,” the study’s authors wrote.

Not regulated by the FDA

It’s important to know that IV lounges and drip bars are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. “The marketing has gotten way out ahead of the science,” Shmerling says.

In fact, most clinics include some variation of this disclaimer on their website and in marketing materials: “The services provided have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. … Any designations or references to therapies are for marketing purposes only.”

What are the disadvantages, side effects and risks?

Experts say there is little scientific evidence backing the IV vitamin treatments. They also caution that medically unnecessary IV drips could be risky for some people — particularly those who have heart disease or kidney problems.

For these individuals, getting too much fluid too fast could be harmful because their “heart or kidney can’t tolerate a lot of salts and fluids being introduced into their bodies,” says Sam Torbati, M.D., cochair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. “Medically speaking, that’s where there is the most potential for harm.”   

He recommends checking with your medical provider before visiting a drip clinic.

If you decide to try IV therapy, make sure you’re getting the treatment in a safe, clean environment. Also ask who will be administering your IV and how much experience they have, Torbati advises.

Because you are getting a needle placed in your arm, there is a chance of pain or bruising or, in rare cases, infection or inflammation of the vein. Older patients tend to have smaller veins, so placing an IV in someone over age 65 is more difficult than in a younger person. “The more frail and medically complex you are, the more cautious I would be about trying these things,” Torbati says.

It’s also important to ask exactly what substances will be going into your body.

Some drips have anti-inflammatory or anti-nausea medications that could cause an allergic reaction or interact with drugs a patient is taking, Torbati says. Other infusions include prescription drugs such as ketorolac and lidocaine that could lead to life-threatening adverse effects in some patients, according to a 2014 study published in the Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition.  

In 2018, supermodel Kendall Jenner was hospitalized after a bad reaction to a Myers’ cocktail vitamin IV drip, according to news reports.

How long does vitamin IV therapy last in your body?

The actual treatment may take between 30 minutes and two hours per session, depending on the individual and IV drip selected.

Most clinics claim that the IV fluid remains in the body for a few hours while the nutrients may remain in the body for days, weeks or even months.

Bottom line: “There's no point to IV therapy for vitamins,” says Edward Boyer, an emergency medicine physician, tenured professor at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and a visiting professor with Harvard Medical School. “The reason is because the vitamins are effective at very low concentrations, in very specific receptors.”

How much does vitamin infusion therapy cost?

The cost of a vitamin drip ranges from a $79 first-time special at some clinics to thousands of dollars for a special cocktail delivered to your home by a mobile provider. Although IV drips are low risk for most healthy people, medical experts generally recommend against them — mostly because they’re expensive and unnecessary.

“There’s nothing magical about getting vitamins in an IV,” Torbati says. “If you want extra nutrition, take a vitamin. If you have a headache, take a Motrin. Instead of spending hundreds on an IV, you can spend a nickel on a pill and get the same benefit.”