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Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin and is stored in the fat tissues inside our body. The main source of Vitamin D for a human being is adequate sunlight. It is necessary for absorbing calcium in the body, maintaining healthy bones, gums and keeping depression and other mental illnesses at bay.
It is said that excess of good can prove to be bad; it is the same case with Vitamin D as well. Though there are not many cases of its toxicity, but once it occurs the consequences can be disarming! Exposure to sunlight can seldom cause the toxicity, main reasons are vitamin D supplements.
Supplements may be taken when there is a deficiency. However, in some cases to alleviate the deficiency if a person begins to expose himself to sunlight, eats Vitamin D rich diet and on top of it consumes supplements, then a case of accumulation can take place.
Symptoms Of Vitamin D Toxicity
Dehydration
Excessive Vitamin D flushes out the water from the body through urine. You will experience an increase in the frequency of urination and consequent thirst most of the time.The hydration level of body is also bound to reduce with vomiting caused by the excessive levels of this Vitamin in the body.
Constipation
Constipation is a condition where bowel movement is painful and hard to pass. The consistency of stools has to be soft for it to smoothly pass through the entire intestine and out of the rectum.The main cause behind constipation caused in case of vitamin D toxicity is low level of water in the body. Healthy intake of water and appropriate level of hydration is necessary to maintain a good bowel movement.
Kidney Damage
As mentioned earlier Vitamin D is vital to the absorption of calcium in our body. However, excess vitamin D leads to an increase in the rate of absorption and what happens is that the usual amount of calcium that is flushed out of the body is also absorbed.This leads to excessive calcium in the blood stream and body. This condition is known as Hypercalcemia. The elevated calcium puts a lot of undue pressure on the kidney’s filtering function thereby causing kidney damage in long term.
Heart Damage
Excessive Vitamin D can cause considerable damage to the heart by increasing the risk of cardio Vascular diseases significantly. People with this condition also suffer from abnormalities in heart beats.Basically there is a rate and rhythm that the heart follows in a natural course however, excessive vitamin D can causes interruptions in the same.
Urinary Stones
The elevated calcium levels cause calcification in the body which leads to formation of tiny stones in the body. These stones are basically solidified calcium. They get washed down into the kidney and from there, they are led to urinary tract. You may experience severe abdominal pain especially while passing urine if this is the case. Laser or invasive surgeries might be required to clear them up in some cases.
Bone Pain
Excessive calcium as a consequence of higher levels of Vitamin D causes calcification of bones. Due to this process, instead of helping and maintaining a healthy bone structure in the body, calcium begins to degenerate the bones, which may make the bones brittle and painful.Vitamin D toxicity can cause permanent damage to the body and organs. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to take in any supplements only on the prescription of a doctor. Self medication in this case can cause severe side effects and worsening of the already existing issues.
