Many people take multivitamins and supplements as a kind of ‘insurance’. These pills are supposed to make up for the vitamins and minerals that are missing from their diet. Often these pills are quite high dosed. Do you just pee out what you don’t use or do you really have disadvantages?
Types of vitamins
There are 13 vitamins. They are either water-soluble or fat-soluble (vitamins A, D, E and K). The body can store the latter, but you pee water-soluble vitamins out again. In principle, an excess of the water-soluble vitamins simply leaves the body through the urine.
Upper limit
A daily upper limit has been set for all fat-soluble vitamins, but also for vitamins B3 and B6. This is different from the recommended daily allowance (RDA). You have to get the last one to stay healthy.
The upper limit is often a multiple of this recommended daily amount. If you go over that limit, complaints can arise and you get a dangerous amount of a certain vitamin. In one case you can get intestinal complaints, but in other cases liver problems can also arise. Read here which vitamins have an upper limit and what this limit is.
Other complaints
You only pee out the vitamins without an upper limit. No acceptable upper limits have been established for vitamin C, beta-carotene, iron, phosphorus, potassium and manganese. However, these vitamins and minerals can also cause annoying complaints, such as diarrhoea, in large quantities.
Conclusion
There are almost always risks associated with taking too many vitamins. The side effects are either harmful or annoying. If you eat normally, according to the Wheel of Five, you get enough – but not too many – vitamins. If you want to take a supplement or a multivitamin, use one whose dose(s) do not exceed the RDA. Check the label carefully before using a vitamin.
Also read: Eating too many carrots makes you orange
By: National Care Guide / Æde de Jong
Sources: Nutrition Center