How to avoid vitamin D side effects?

Vitamin D side effects
Are there any dangers of taking too much vitamin D? How to avoid vitamin D side effects? These side effects are distinct from vitamin D poisoning.

Vitamin D poisoning is extremely rare and actually involves only one symptom: high levels of calcium in the blood.

Bruce Hollis, a pioneer in the field of vitamin D research who has participated in many studies on vitamin D, said he has never seen a case of vitamin D poisoning.

It is necessary to supplement hundreds of thousands of IU of vitamin D3 every day for several months before symptoms of poisoning occur.

Vitamin D3 10,000 IU sounds like a big number, but on page 1667 of the book "Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics," it is written: The maintenance dose of vitamin D is usually between 50,000 and 250,000 IU per day.

But soon after, the textbook was changed to between 400 and 600 IU per day. Perhaps because it was too effective, they had to delete it. The specific reason is unknown.

How to avoid vitamin D side effects?

The side effects of vitamin D usually do not come from vitamin D itself, but from the cofactors that work synergistically with it. Vitamin D depends on these cofactors, including the following:

•Magnesium

Vitamin D requires magnesium to function properly in the body.

While you are deficient in magnesium, if you also supplement a large amount of vitamin D, it will aggravate the deficiency, because the more vitamin D you supplement, the more magnesium you need, and the two work synergistically.

The main problem with vitamin D poisoning is too much calcium in the blood, and magnesium prevents vascular calcification.

Magnesium is also a natural calcium channel blocker. Too much calcium can cause blood clots, and magnesium helps control the process of blood clots.

Green leafy vegetables: The center of chlorophyll is magnesium.
Chocolate(sugar-free)
Certain nuts(don’t eat too many)
Pumpkin seeds
are the best food source of magnesium.

When choosing a magnesium supplement, we recommend: Magnesium Glycinate.

Magnesium glycinate is easily absorbed by the body, and it is recommended to take 800 mg or more per day, and some people even need to supplement with 2,400 mg of magnesium per day to relieve cramps.

•Zinc

Vitamin D receptors are dependent on zinc.

As with magnesium, taking vitamin D at the same time as zinc deficiency can worsen the deficiency because the need for zinc increases when more vitamin D3 is supplemented.

Symptoms of zinc deficiency include: changes in taste and smell, acne, peeling skin, decreased testosterone (zinc is necessary for the synthesis of testosterone), etc.

red meat

shellfish

Is the best food source of zinc.

When taking zinc supplements, be sure to combine them with other trace minerals. To ensure that long-term zinc administration does not cause copper deficiency.

•Vitamin K2

When increasing vitamin D intake, more vitamin K2 is needed.

Vitamin K2 helps prevent calcium buildup and also helps transport calcium to bones and teeth.

For every 10,000 IU of vitamin D3, 100 micrograms of vitamin K2 is needed.

MK-7 is the best form of vitamin K2.

Premium grass-fed butter

Pickle

Sauerkraut

grass fed beef

egg

All contain vitamin K2.

•Vitamin A (retinol)

The active form of vitamin A is called retinol, which is also an important cofactor for vitamin D.

Vitamin A receptors sometimes combine with vitamin D receptors to form a complex, and the two work together. If one is lacking, the other will not function optimally.

Vitamin A also helps prevent calcium from entering the arteries.

Symptoms of vitamin A deficiency include: difficulty seeing in the dark at night, dry eyes, dry skin, reduced immunity, acne, etc.

Vitamin A does not refer to beta-carotene, which is found in plant-based vegetables, and getting vitamin A from vegetables will not work.

It is highly recommended to get vitamin A from animal foods rather than from pills. The following foods are rich in retinol:

yolk

liver

Cod liver oil: For example, cod liver oil not only contains omega-3 fatty acids, but also vitamin A and vitamin D.

Things to note:
①Be sure to take vitamin D3, not D2.
Vitamin D2 is less potent than vitamin D3 and is usually synthetic.
②Avoid taking synthetic vitamin D3 supplements
Choose natural sources of vitamin D3.
③Avoid D3 supplements containing fillers such as maltodextrin or glucose syrup.
Manufacturers add additional ingredients such as maltodextrin or glucose syrup when producing vitamin D.

Because this is a very cheap ingredient, most companies selling vitamin D3 use these fillers.

There is a very simple method (starch test) that can detect hidden maltodextrin and other starches in supplements. The test method is as follows:

Open the capsule and mix the contents with water.

Next, add a few drops of iodine.

If the solution turns dark purple, suspect starch.

If the supplement contains no starch, it will turn yellow or slightly clear.

Reference:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3627603/

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5794996/