What is Vitamin Toxicity? Are You at Risk?

Everyday 44% of Americans take a vitamin or dietary supplement of some sort, which increases the risk of vitamin toxicity. Toxicity from vitamin intake is a condition, which develops from taking massive doses of either a multivitamin or specific individual vitamins. The risk of vitamin toxicity increases when people are unaware of how vitamins are utilized, stored and excreted from the body.

Vitamins differ in the amount that is required to cause toxic. This is often referred to as vitamin poisoning which is becoming more common because of the popularity of vitamin supplements.

84% of Americans consider vitamins safe, no matter which vitamin which ones we are talking about. In 2007, vitamin C, vitamin E and multivitamins were among the five best selling supplements in the United States. It wasn’t until the early ‘80s that researchers and scientists got a good handle on identifying different types of vitamins that our bodies need for optimal health. However, even today, researchers have not identified everything that the human body requires in order to function at its best. Vitamins are organic molecules needed in small amounts for adequate growth, reproduction and maintenance of good health.

We know that there are two broad categories of vitamins. In the first category are water-soluble vitamins, which are easily excreted through the kidneys when maximum amount of vitamin has been achieved.

In other words, vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that we can take in large doses without fear of bad side effects from toxicity, save diarrhea and may be abdominal cramping.

On the other hand, vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin, which is stored in the fat cells of the body for later use. The body is able to store excess amounts of vitamin E that can lead to toxicity and significant side effects.

Other fat-soluble vitamins include vitamin D., vitamin E, vitamin A. and vitamin K.

All other vitamins, including vitamin B complex can be dissolved in water and are called water-soluble vitamins.

Vitamin D and vitamin A. are the most toxic of the fat-soluble vitamins. Symptoms of vitamin D toxicity are nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and loss of appetite. Individuals can also experience constipation that alternates with diarrhea or have a tingling sensation in their mouth.

The dosage required to bring on toxic side effects will differ depending upon the size and age of the individual. The dosage will be much smaller in an infant (a single dose of 15 mg or greater) than in adults (a daily dose of greater than 1 mg over a long period of time or a single dose of 50 mg). The immediate effect is abdominal cramping, nausea and vomiting. Prolonged exposure can result in reversible deposits of crystals damaging the heart, lung and kidney.

Vitamin A toxicity can also happen with a long-term consumption of 20 mg of retinol or more per day. The symptoms include hydrocephalus, vomiting, fatigue, constipation, bone pain, severe headaches, rough and dry skin and loss of hair. This is a special issue during pregnancy since mothers who take 10 mg of vitamin A. or more on a daily basis can have a child with birth defects.

It is also possible to take in toxic levels of vitamin A. by eating large quantities of certain foods such as beef liver or eggs.

Vitamin E can produce headaches, tiredness, double vision and diarrhea in humans. Animal studies have shown that large doses of vitamin E can interfere with the absorption of other fat-soluble vitamins and large doses over many weeks can result in deficiencies of vitamin D, vitamin A. and vitamin K.

Prolonged consumption of large doses of vitamin K. will result in anemia, which is reduced number of red blood cells in the blood stream. An infant will experience deposits of pigments in the brain, nerve cells and destruction of the red blood cells as well as death.

Vitamin toxicity from water-soluble vitamins is much less common. Niacin is one water-soluble vitamin that has been known to produce common toxic side effects which results in the flushing of the skin. It also causes nausea, diarrhea and liver damage. In spite of the side effects, large doses of niacin are used to lower blood cholesterol in order to prevent heart disease. Although the flushing skin is a side effect that happens when the therapy is started, it can disappear with continued therapy.

In all cases, the treatment for vitamin toxicity requires discontinuing the supplementation. Vitamin D toxicity will need additional actions to reduce the calcium levels in the blood stream because severe hypercalcemia (an elevated calcium level in the blood. Normal range: 9-10.5 mg/dL or 2.2-2.6 mmol/L) which is a medical emergency.

The prognosis is usually excellent and side effects usually go away as soon as the overdoses or stopped.

The exceptions are severe vitamin D. toxicity, which leads to deposits of calcium salts in the soft tissue of the body, birth defects due to vitamin A toxicity and damage to the nervous system caused by mega doses of vitamin B6.

A variety of diseases is treated with the proper use of vitamins. In the correct dosage, they also help reduce the risk of developing diseases.

For example, women are encouraged to take folic acid supplementation when they are in childbearing years because a lack of folic acid in the first 28 days of gestation can result in a neural tube defect in a developing baby.

Iron is a known chemical found in multivitamins, which can negatively affect the immune system and the bon structures of the body when taken in excess. Men and postmenopausal women should never take multivitamins which contain iron for this reason. Only menstruating women should take an iron supplement to make up for the extra blood loss every month.

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