As winter sets in, so does a person’s need to top up their Vitamin D levels.
During the autumn and winter, you need to get Vitamin D from your diet because the sun is not strong enough for the body to make the crucial vitamin.
Adults should therefor take additional Vitamin D from foods or supplements to get at least 600 IU per day.
But, as with most things, taking too many sunshine vitamins could have a devastating impact on your health.
What is Vitamin D toxicity - known medically as hypervitaminosis - and what are the symptoms to spot warning you have taken too much?
Vitamin D toxicity symptoms
Vitamin D toxicity, or overdose, is extremely harmful, doctors have warned in a new BMJ Case report.
This comes after a man was treated for various symptoms associated with taking too much of the vitamin.
Known as “hypervitaminosis D”, the condition has been on the rise and is linked to a wide range of potentially serious health issues.
In the case study, a middle-aged man was referred to hospital by his family doctor after complaining of a number of unusual symptoms.
These included recurring vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, leg cramps, tinnitus, dry mouth, increased thirst, diarrhoea and weight loss.
His symptoms continued for a total of three months
He had been taking high doses of more than 20 over-the-counter supplements every day containing Vitamin D 50,000 mg (the daily requirement is 600 mg or 400 IU); Vitamin K2 100 mg (daily requirement 100–300 μg); Vitamin C, vitamin B9 (folate) 1,000 mg (daily requirement 400 μg); Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), Vitamin B6, omega-3 2,000 mg twice daily (daily requirement 200–500 mg), plus several other vitamin, mineral, nutrient and probiotic supplements.
Once his symptoms developed, he stopped taking his daily supplements, but his symptoms didn’t go away.
His blood tests revealed that he was seven times over his recommended Vitamin D level.
“Globally, there is a growing trend of hypervitaminosis D, a clinical condition characterised by elevated serum vitamin D3 levels,” the authors wrote.
“Given its slow turnover (half-life of approximately two months), during which vitamin D toxicity develops, symptoms can last for several weeks."
How much Vitamin D should you take?
“If you choose to takeVvitamin D supplements, 10 micrograms a day will be enough for most people,” says the NHS.
It added: “Do not take more than 100 micrograms (4,000 IU) of vitamin D a day as it could be harmful.
“This applies to adults, including pregnant and breastfeeding women and the elderly, and children aged 11 to 17 years.”
Other symptoms of hypervitaminosis or vitamin D toxicity may include:
- Drowsiness
- Confusion
- Apathy
- Psychosis
- Depression
- Stupor
- Constipation
- Peptic ulcers
- Pancreatitis
- High blood pressure
- Abnormal heart rhythm
- Kidney abnormalities
- Inflammatory eye disease
- Joint stiffness
- Hearing loss or deafness.
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