Doctors have warned people against taking too much vitamin D after a man needed hospital care for eight days for an overdose.
The middle-aged man had been experiencing symptoms including vomiting, nausea and leg cramps for three months when doctors referred him to the hospital for treatment.
According to the journal BMJ Case Reports, symptoms began about a month after he started an intensive vitamin regimen.
He also suffered from tinnitus, dry mouth, weight loss, increased thirst, and diarrhea.
Doctors say overdoses – known as hypervitaminosis D – are on the rise, though not yet common.
The man’s daily regimen includes more than 20 over-the-counter supplements.
As part of this, he took 50,000mg of vitamin D – a daily requirement of 600mg.
Tests showed that his vitamin D levels were seven times higher than needed and that his body had high levels of magnesium and calcium. His kidneys are also not working properly.
Intravenous fluids were used to flush his system and he was given medication to reduce excessive calcium levels in his blood.
But two months after he was discharged from the hospital, the amount of vitamin D in his body was still higher than it should be.
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The report’s authors say that “globally, there is an increasing trend of hypervitaminosis D” but emphasize this is just one case.
The NHS website says “some people will not make enough vitamin D from sunlight because they have little or no sun exposure”.
It recommends that adults and children over four years of age take a daily supplement containing 10mg of vitamin D throughout the year if they are not often outdoors, in a facility such as a care home or normally dressed. almost completely covered. skin when outdoors.
