Vitamin E over dosage also known as Avitaminosis E is an unlikely and rare condition. It is almost impossible to suffer from overdose of vitamin E through natural food items and therefore, 99% of the time it is the supplements that can be blamed for elevated levels of vitamin E.
It is a fat soluble vitamin and therefore, the absorption of vitamin E is limited by the fat reserves in the body which also discourages the excess build up of vitamin E. In this feature we will discuss various symptoms of vitamin over dose and its effects on the body.
Effective Symptoms Of Vitamin E Overdose
Excessive Bleeding
Vitamin E is a blood thinner. It regulates the clotting of blood in case of open injuries so that the blood doesn’t become thicker than the requirement. When there is excess vitamin E in the body the clotting function suffers as the blood does thicken at all!This leads to persistent and continuous bleeding as because there is no clotting when the vitamin E is in elevated levels in the body. In fact if you are on other medications like anti-coagulation medicines or aspirin, the combination of these with high vitamin E can lead to very critical and serious condition.
Diarrhoea
Our body has a system for balancing the hormonal, vitamin and other nutrient levels. The mechanism is very simple, when there is an excess the body throws it out by way of excretions.When there are elevated levels of vitamin E, our body uses the retained fluid and flushes the vitamin E out of the body. This may happen by way of loose motions and vomiting. Diarrhoea is the fall out of this flush out. The body’s tendency to vomit may also make the person feel persistent nausea.
Thyroid Function
Vitamin E is critical for thyroid function. This gland is located in our neck and produces hormones called T3 and T4 that are responsible for regulating our body’s metabolism and absorption of calcium.Excess presence of vitamin E hampers this function of hormones produced by the thyroid. T3 hormone is also considered as a feel good hormone. Excessive Vitamin E levels can therefore also trigger depression and emotional lethargy in the body.
Cardiovascular And Kidney Function
Studies have found that excessive vitamin E in the body increases and encourage complications and irreversible effects on people who suffer from cardiovascular diseases. It is linked with incidences of fatalities in cases of heart attack, heart failure and stroke.Since excessive vitamin E tends to dehydrate the body as it pushes the flushing out mechanism, this puts a lot of undue pressure on kidney. Persistent flushing out can damage the kidneys or reduce the effectiveness of their purification function releasing toxins in the body.
Allergies And Skin Reaction
Excessive vitamin E is associated with adverse skin conditions and worsen certain skin disorders like eczema and psoriasis. There are many ointments that are based on vitamin E as the active ingredient.If applied in controlled and limited quantities they are reasonably safe as vitamin E is recommended for good and youthful skin. However persistent and excessive use of vitamin E over a long period of time can cause blotchy skin and give rise to skin allergies.