Life Science Encyclopedia

Vitamin poisoning, or hypervitaminosis, refers to a condition of high storage levels of vitamins, which can lead to toxic symptoms. The medical names of the different conditions are derived from the vitamin involved: an excess of vitamin A, for example, is called "hypervitaminosis A".

High dosage vitamin A; high dosage, slow release vitamin B₃; and very high dosage vitamin B₆ alone (i.e. without vitamin B complex) are sometimes associated with vitamin side effects that usually rapidly cease with supplement reduction or cessation. However, Vitamin C does have a pronounced laxative effect, typically when intake of vitamin C is in the range of 5-20 grams per day for a person in normal "good health".^[1]

High doses of mineral supplements can also lead to side effects and toxicity. Mineral-supplement poisoning does occur occasionally due to excessive and unusual intake of iron-containing supplements, including some multivitamins, but is not common.^{[citation needed]}

The Dietary Reference Intake recommendations from the United States Department of Agriculture define a "tolerable upper intake level" for most vitamins.

Comparative safety statistics

Death by vitamin poisoning appears to be quite rare in the US, typically none in a given year. However before 1998, several deaths per year were typically associated with pharmaceutical iron-containing supplements, especially brightly-colored, sugar-coated, high-potency iron supplements, and most deaths were children.^[2] Unit packaging restrictions on supplements with more than 30 mg iron have since reduced deaths to 0 or 1 per year.^[3] These statistics compare with 59 deaths due to aspirin poisoning in 2003 and ^[4] 147 deaths associated with acetaminophen-containing products in 2003.^[5]

See also

• Hypervitaminosis A
• Hypervitaminosis D
• Avitaminosis
• Orthorexia nervosa

References

1. ^ Vitamin C, Titrating To Bowel Tolerance, Anascorbemia, And Acute Induced Scurvy Robert F. Cathcart, III, M.D. 1994
2. ^ http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/159/6/557
3. ^ http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/159/6/557/POA40361T1
4. ^ http://www.aapcc.org/Annual%20Reports/03report/Annual%20Report%202003.pdf
5. ^ http://www.aapcc.org/Annual%20Reports/03report/Annual%20Report%202003.pdf