A consequence in the health of patients is the excess of vitamin D causes the accumulation of calcium in the blood, generating risks.
The potential risks of supplements that are generally considered safe when appropriate doses are exceeded. Photo: Shutterstock.
Understanding that the regulation of nutritional supplements, such as vitamins, are less regulated than other types of drugs, leads the community in general to believe that the consumption of these is harmless, and that it only generates well-being.
Keep in mind that it is a correct use and respect for the instructions given by professionals, or those that come with the product, since irresponsible use can become a health risk to those who consume them.
Persistent and serious adverse symptoms may occur, when they are unaware that they may fall into a overdose with supplements of vitamin D.
In a case report published in the specialized media BMJ Case Report, a middle-aged man sent to the hospital by his family doctor is reported, after complaining of recurrent vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, leg cramps, tinnitus ( tinnitus), dry mouth, increased thirst, diarrhea and the involuntary loss of 12.7 kilos of weight.
The patient had been experiencing symptoms for three months, starting just one month after starting an intensive vitamin supplementation regimen on the advice of a nutritional therapist.
Previously, he had suffered from a series of health problems including tuberculosis, a tumor in the inner ear (resulting in deafness in that ear), a buildup of fluid in the brain (hydrocephalus), bacterial meningitis, and bacterial sinusitis.
Thus, he had been taking doses of up to 50,000 mg of vitamin D (the recommended daily dose is 600 mg) and other vitamins, minerals, nutrients and probiotics, in several cases notably exceeding the recommended amounts by several orders of magnitude.
When the symptom picture began to develop, he stopped taking the supplements; however, disease progression continued. A blood test revealed that she had very high levels of calcium and slightly elevated levels of magnesium, and that the concentration of vitamin D it was seven times that necessary for the normal functions of the organism.
The tests that were carried out also showed that he suffered from acute kidney damage.
The patient had to be hospitalized for eight days, during which he was given intravenous fluids to ‘flush’ his system, while bisphosphonates (drugs normally used to strengthen bones and reduce excessive calcium levels) were administered. in the blood.
Two months after discharge, this person’s calcium levels had returned to normal, but vitamin D they were still abnormally high.
The authors of the report explain that, globally, an upward trend is being observed in the incidence of hypervitaminosis D, a clinical condition characterized by high levels of vitamin D3 in the blood serum. The most frequently affected people are women, children and surgical patients.
In these cases, the vitamin D favors an excessive accumulation of calcium in the blood, which causes a wide range of symptoms (dizziness, confusion, apathy, psychosis, depression, stupor, coma, anorexia, abdominal pain, vomiting, constipation, peptic ulcers, pancreatitis, high blood pressure , abnormal heart rhythm, inflammatory eye disease, arthralgia, hearing loss, and kidney damage).
The paper’s authors conclude that this case serves as an example of the potential risks of supplements that are generally considered safe when appropriate doses are exceeded or when taken in off-label combinations.
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