Vitamin D is important for absorbing calcium and keeping your bones strong. Your body also uses it for cell differentiation, regulating your insulin and blood pressure and proper immune system function. However, because vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin stored in your body, you can consume toxic amounts. This can be a problem for children, because it takes smaller amounts of vitamin D for toxicity symptoms to appear.
Toxicity Symptoms
The tolerable upper intake level for vitamin D is 1,000 IU per day for infants up to 6 months old, 1,500 IU per day for infants between 7 and 12 months old, 2,500 IU for children between 1 and 3, 3,000 IU for children between 4 and 8 and 4,000 for children 9 and older. If children consume more than the tolerable upper intake level, they may experience toxicity symptoms including nausea, anorexia, vomiting, constipation, poor appetite, confusion, nervousness and weakness.
Hypercalcemia
One of the dangers for children with high levels of vitamin D is hypercalcemia, or high blood calcium. High levels of vitamin D cause more calcium to be absorbed into the blood. This excess calcium can cause health problems including bone loss, increased fractures, kidney stones, kidney failure and abnormal heart rhythm. It can also cause a child's organs to calcify, which interferes with their functioning.
Slowed Growth
Excess vitamin D intake from supplements can slow both the mental and physical growth of your child, according to Colorado State University Extension. This can cause your child to fall behind in school and be the subject of teasing due to his smaller stature or not being as advanced in school as other kids his age.
High Blood Pressure
Consuming large amounts of vitamin D in a short time can also cause your child to have high blood pressure, according to a case report published in September 2005 in "Pediatrics." High blood pressure can increase the risk of other health problems, including heart disease, sleep apnea, kidney disease, heart attack and stroke.
References
- MayoClinic.com; Vitamin D Toxicity: What if You Get Too Much?; Katherine Zeratsky; December 2010
- The Merck Manual: Vitamin D
- "Pediatrics"; Acute Vitamin D Intoxication in a Child; Fermin Barrueto Jr, et al.; September 2005
- Linus Pauling Institute; Vitamin D; Jane Higdon; March 2004
- Colorado State University Extension; Fat-Soluble Vitamins; J. Anderson, et al.; August 2008
- MayoClinic.com; Hypercalcemia; May 2011
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