Overdosing on Vitamins D and A

[1977Nicky]

My husband has recently bought a selection of vitamins; multivitamins, calcium (with vitamin D), Omega 3 and Cod Liver Oil (with vitamin A). I looked at the dosages on the bottles and he is taking 300% of his RDA for vitamin D and 200% of his RDA for vitamin A. Is this dangerous and what are the potential side effects? He claims that he is feeling a lot more awake and motivated since he has been taking them but I am worried they will be bad for him in the long run.

[WoWo]

You can overdose on vitamins but you need to take them at extreme levels to do so. The RDA is simply a guideline figure which you should try to match 200% and 300% might sound a lot but it's not really enough to do any damage.

Here's some more information...

http://chemo.net/newpage35.htm

(Try not to confuse 100 times as show on that page with 100% two very different things)

[morg_monster]

Vitamins are either water-soluble or fat-soluble. Vitamins which are water-soluble have a low overdose risk, because any excess is just excreted in our urine. Fat soluble ones present more problems because they accumulate in the fat in our body, and so build up over time. This also means that you don't need to have fat soluble vitamins every day, because your body stores it up for use when your diet is deficient.

Retinol (the form of vit A included in supplements) can be toxic in large doses, making people more prone to bone fractures, so pregnant women are told not to take too much. Our body converts carotenoids found in vegetables into vitamin A, this form is not toxic so get eating those green leafy veg, and any yellow or orange fruit and veg.

Vit D is also fat soluble and again, can be toxic in large amounts. Our bodies are really efficient at producing its own vit D by using sunlight on our skin to convert various molecules into vitamin D, it is also present in dairy foods, oily fish, egg yolks, and fortified foods such as marg and breakfast cereals. It is unlikely that your husband is deficient in vitamin D unless he never goes outside and eats no ne of the above foods.

Any website will say that you shouldn't take more than the RDA of these vitamins, it is probably best to be on the safe side. Both these vitamins do have important roles in the body (most recently cited as cancer-fighting) but there is no need to go over the RDA. Remember he will also be getting these vitamins from his diet.

[qapmoc]

If you have a underactive thyroid, even slighty, which will make you fell maybe tired and lethergic etc.. then you can overdose on vitamin D quite easily as you will not be metabolising it effectively, so you should be a bit carefull if the reason you started taking vitamins is because you feel tired often.

[Jennykins]

If Im taking to much of something I have noticed that I'll get blouted or head akes or pee to much, or its hard to go number 2... I have lerned this because I like to take a mutli V puls B6, B12 and others... but you cant go over what is recomended...

And NEVER take vitimins if there is no DIN number on the container!!!!!! it should be something like DIN 003020

If there isnt one then it is not a good product.!!!.

GOOD LUCK !!! JEN