Vitamin D is exceptionally crucial completely health and wellness. It plays several functions in keeping your body’s cells healthy and functioning the means they should. Most people don’t get sufficient vitamin D, so supplements prevail. However, it’s additionally feasible — although rare — for this vitamin to accumulate and reach toxic levels in your body.
This write-up goes over 6 potential negative effects of getting excessive amounts of this important vitamin.
Deficiency and Toxicity
Vitamin D is associated with calcium absorption, immune feature, and protecting bone, muscular tissue, and heart wellness. It takes place naturally in food and can likewise be produced by your body when your skin is exposed to sunlight.
Yet, apart from fatty fish, there are couple of foods abundant in vitamin D. What’s more, most people don’t obtain enough sun exposure to produce adequate vitamin D.
Therefore, deficiency is very usual. Actually, it’s approximated that about 1 billion people worldwide don’t get sufficient of this vitamin.
Supplements are very common, and both vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 can be absorbed supplement type. Vitamin D3 is generated in feedback to sunlight exposure and is found in animal items, whereas vitamin D2 takes place in plants.
Vitamin D3 has been discovered to boost blood levels dramatically more than D2. Research studies have actually revealed that each added 100 IU of vitamin D3 you consume each day will certainly elevate your blood vitamin D levels by 1 ng/ml (2.5 nmol/l), on average.
Nevertheless, taking exceptionally high doses of vitamin D3 for extended periods may lead to excessive buildup in your body.
Vitamin D drunkenness occurs when blood levels rise above 150 ng/ml (375 nmol/l). Because the vitamin is stored in body fat and released right into the bloodstream gradually, the results of toxicity may last for several months after you quit taking supplements.
Importantly, toxicity isn’t usual and occurs practically specifically in people that take lasting, high-dose supplements without checking their blood levels.
It’s likewise possible to unintentionally consume way too much vitamin D by taking supplements that contain much higher quantities than are detailed on the label.
On the other hand, you can not reach alarmingly high blood levels via diet and sunlight direct exposure alone.
Below are the 6 main side effects of excessive vitamin D.
1. Elevated Blood Levels
Attaining adequate levels of vitamin D in your blood may help enhance your immunity and safeguard you from conditions like weakening of bones and cancer.
However, there isn’t contract on an ideal variety for adequate levels.
Although a vitamin D level of 30 ng/ml (75 nmol/l) is typically thought about adequate, the Vitamin D Council recommends preserving levels of 40 — 80 ng/ml (100 — 200 nmol/l) and states that anything over 100 ng/ml (250 nmol/l) may be damaging.
While an enhancing number of people are supplementing with vitamin D, it’s unusual to find somebody with very high blood levels of this vitamin.
One recent research checked out information from more than 20,000 people over a 10-year duration. It located that just 37 people had levels above 100 ng/ml (250 nmol/l). Just one person had true toxicity, at 364 ng/ml (899 nmol/l).
In one case study, a female had a level of 476 ng/ml (1,171 nmol/l) after taking a supplement that provided her 186,900 IU of vitamin D3 daily for 2 months.
This was a massive 47 times the normally recommended safe ceiling of 4,000 IU daily.
The female was admitted to the hospital after she experienced fatigue, lapse of memory, nausea, throwing up, slurred speech, and other signs and symptoms.
Although only incredibly huge doses can create toxicity so quickly, even strong fans of these supplements suggest a ceiling of 10,000 IU each day.
2. Elevated Blood Calcium Levels
Vitamin D aids your body absorb calcium from the food you eat. As a matter of fact, this is among its essential duties.
Nonetheless, if vitamin D consumption is excessive, blood calcium may reach levels that can create undesirable and possibly unsafe signs and symptoms.
Symptoms of hypercalcemia, or high blood calcium levels, include:
- digestive distress, such as vomiting, nausea, and stomach pain
- fatigue, dizziness, and confusion
- excessive thirst
- frequent urination
The normal range of blood calcium is 8.5 — 10.2 mg/dl (2.1 — 2.5 mmol/l).
In one case study, an older man with dementia who got 50,000 IU of vitamin D daily for 6 months was repetitively hospitalized with signs and symptoms associated with high calcium levels.
In one more, 2 men took incorrectly identified vitamin D supplements, causing blood calcium levels of 13.2 — 15 mg/dl (3.3 — 3.7 mmol/l). What’s even more, it took a year for their levels to normalize after they quit taking the supplements.
3. Nausea, Vomiting and Poor Appetite
Numerous side effects of too much vitamin D relate to excessive calcium in the blood.
These consist of nausea, vomiting, and inadequate appetite.
Nevertheless, these signs don’t take place in everyone with elevated calcium levels.
One research followed 10 people who had actually developed excessive calcium levels after they had actually taken high-dose vitamin D to remedy deficiency.
4 of them experienced nausea and vomiting, and three of them had a loss of appetite.
Comparable feedbacks to vitamin D megadoses have actually been reported in other studies. One female experienced nausea and weight-loss after taking a supplement that was located to have 78 times extra vitamin D than specified on the label.
Significantly, these signs occurred in response to extremely high dosages of vitamin D3, which resulted in calcium levels more than 12 mg/dl (3.0 mmol/l).
4. Stomach Pain, Constipation or Diarrhea
Stomach pain, constipation, and diarrhea are common digestive issues that are commonly pertaining to food intolerances or irritable bowel syndrome.
However, they can additionally suggest elevated calcium levels caused by vitamin D intoxication.
These signs may take place in those getting high doses of vitamin D to fix deficiency. Similar to other symptoms, feedback appears to be individualized even when vitamin D blood levels are similarly elevated.
In one case study, a boy created stomach pain and constipation after taking poorly labeled vitamin D supplements, whereas his brother experienced elevated blood levels with no other symptoms.
In another case study, an 18-month-old child who was given 50,000 IU of vitamin D3 for 3 months experienced diarrhea, stomach pain, and other symptoms. These signs resolved after the child stopped taking the supplements.
5. Bone Loss
Since vitamin D plays an important function in calcium absorption and bone metabolic process, obtaining adequate is essential for maintaining strong bones.
Nonetheless, too much vitamin D can be destructive to bone health and wellness.
Although many symptoms of excessive vitamin D are credited to high blood calcium levels, some researchers recommend that megadoses may result in low levels of vitamin K2 in the blood.
One of vitamin K2’s most important functions is to maintain calcium in the bones and out of the blood. It’s believed that very high vitamin D levels might reduce vitamin K2 activity.
To safeguard versus bone loss, avoid taking excessive vitamin D supplements and take a vitamin K2 supplement. You can additionally eat foods rich in vitamin K2, such as grass-fed milk and meat.
6. Kidney Failure
Excessive vitamin D intake often results in kidney injury.
In one case study, a man was hospitalized for kidney failure, elevated blood calcium levels, and other signs that occurred after he received vitamin D injections recommended by his doctor.
Undoubtedly, most studies have reported moderate-to-severe kidney injury in people that establish vitamin D toxicity.
In one study in 62 people who received exceedingly high-dose vitamin D injections, everyone knowledgeable kidney failure — whether they had healthy kidneys or existing kidney condition.
Kidney failure is treated with oral or intravenous hydration and medication.
The Bottom Line
Vitamin D is incredibly important for your general health and wellness. Even if you comply with a healthy diet, you might call for supplements to attain optimal blood levels.
Nevertheless, it’s also feasible to have as well much of a great thing.
Make certain to avoid excessive dosages of vitamin D. Typically, 4,000 IU or less each day is thought about secure, as long as your blood worths are being kept track of.
Furthermore, ensure you buy supplements from reliable suppliers to reduce the threat of unexpected overdose due to inappropriate labeling.
If you have actually been taking vitamin D supplements and are experiencing any of the signs and symptoms listed in this short article, consult a health care specialist as soon as possible.
