Vitamins are the favorite supplement of Americans, with 40 percent taking at least one per month and spending $1.7 billion a year, according to a report in "Time" magazine. While some vitamin supplementation can be helpful, especially in people with poor diets or certain medical conditions, taking too many vitamins can lead to a variety of side effects, including hypervitaminosis, or vitamin overdose.
Significance
Vitamins are a frequent cause of accidental poisoning in small children, reports toxicologists at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, with iron overdoses a leading cause of poisoning death in infants and children under the age of 6. Only four pre-natal vitamin tablets containing extra iron can be lethal to a very small child, although even chewable children's vitamins are dangerous if eaten like candy. Lethal reactions to vitamin overdose in adults are rare, but 17 severe reactions and one death from vitamins occurred in U.S. adults in 2007, according to the Annual Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers.
Types
There are 13 vitamins your body needs to develop normally and be healthy, including vitamins A, C, D, E, K and the various B vitamins. Each vitamin has a specific job, and a deficiency in that vitamin can lead to specific diseases.
Effects
Any ingredient in a multiple vitamin supplement can be toxic in large amounts, but the most serious risks tend to come from iron or calcium. Some of the symptoms of vitamin overdose include urinary changes; dry, cracked lips; irregular heartbeat; pain in the muscles, bones and joints; mental or mood changes; skin flushing or rashes; hair loss; and gastrointestinal problems or weight loss.
Considerations
Most single vitamins won't cause immediate problems when taken in large doses. A single large dose of vitamins A and D or the B vitamins, for example, rarely causes symptoms. Some symptoms, such as a skin flush from taking too much niacin, may be uncomfortable, but only lasts a few hours. If you overdose on iron or calcium, you can usually recover if you get prompt medical attention. If you believe you're taking too much of a vitamin, but aren't having life-threatening reactions, don't stop taking the vitamin completely, just cut back to half the dose to allow your body to adjust.
Prevention/Solution
Keep all vitamins in childproof containers out of reach and out of sight of children, and be careful with travel cases that often aren't child-resistant. Read the supplement's label carefully to see what the active ingredients are, which nutrients are included and how much is in a serving. Stay away from supplements that provide mega-doses and instead choose a multivitamin that includes no more than 100 percent of the Recommended Daily Value. Check the expiration date and also look for USP on the label, which ensures that the supplement meets the standards for strength, purity, disintegration and dissolution established by the testing organization U.S. Pharmacopeia. If you're generally healthy and eat a wide variety of foods, especially fruits and vegetables, you probably don't need a vitamin supplement.
Member Comments