Side Effects of Vitamin D
Be Informed and
You Will Avoid Problems

Don't let the worry of the Side Effects of Vitamin D keep you from this incredible nutrient. Vitamin D has SO MANY health benefits that you would do well to research this nutrient thoroughly and find out all of the Vitamin D Facts that you can. While there are literally thousands of studies that show its incredible health benefits, most doctors still haven't come around to looking for the Symptoms of Vitamin D Deficiency that are all around us as 'Incurable Chronic Health Problems' such as the connection between diseases like:

with the list of vitamin d deficiency diseases going on and on, it's no wonder that the few vitamin d side effects are coming more and more into the forefront as FINALLY more and more people begin taking rightfully begin taking vitamin d for its amazing health benefits.

Since Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin, it doesn't get excreted from the body in the urine as the water soluble vitamins do, and this allows you to be able to overdose. But don't get symptoms of an Overdose on Vitamin D and the side effects of vitamin D mixed up! They are two very distinct problems that are often confused with each other.

Side Effects of Vitamin D

Side effects of vitamin d occur when your body has a negative reaction to the vitamin d. This is distinctly different from symptoms of when you have taken too much. It takes a VERY large amount of vitamin d to overdose, so if you are having a negative reaction or uncomfortable symptoms when you first begin to take vitamin d, unless you have taken over One Million IU's of Vitamin D, then these are simply vitamin d side effects and NOT an Overdose on Vitamin D

While the RDA of vitamin d is between 400 to 800 IU's per day, doctors will often give Prescription Vitamin D in doses of approximately 50,000 IU's in one pill. Even if you take this large dose that is 100 TIMES the RDA and have uncomfortable symptoms, they are NOT Overdose Symptoms, but only the side effects of vitamin d.

However, in all of the thousands of studies on vitamin d, there were actually very few vitamin d side effects. Researchers in many of these studies cited the lack of Side Effects, even in very large studies.

"… investigators supplemented healthy adults daily
with either 25 µg (1000 IU) or 100 µg (4000 IU)
vitamin D for 5 months… Not a single
adverse event or episode of hypercalciuria
was observed in the 60 subjects enrolled…"
Assessment of Dietary Vitamin D Requirements

As with any substance that you put into your body, however, some people DO have a reaction to vitamin d. The most common side effects of vitamin d are minor and can be overcome easily.

These are:

Drowsiness
Nausea
Headache
Constipation
Anxiety
Increased Pain/Bone Pain

Most of these are minor and will go away in a few days or will go away if you are sure to take them with food. But if they continue, you may want to consider the possibility that they are Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency that can be improved by taking some magnesium as outlined on the Magnesium Dosage page. You see, your body uses magnesium in order to process vitamin d into a usable form and you CAN become magnesium deficient from taking vitamin d!

More problematic side effects of vitamin d are bone pain, muscle pain or generalized pain soon after starting to take vitamin d. Those that experience increasing pain become fearful and think that they should stop taking it. But stopping therapy is NOT recommended in the case of increasing pain. In fact, it is likely that you are EXTREMELY vitamin d deficient and have developed bone demineralization from being vitamin d deficient for a very long time and actually need vitamin d more so than the 'average' person.

Alternatives to Vitamin D Supplements

Having adequate vitamin d levels is extraordinarily important, but meeting your needs in the form of Vitamin D Foods is nearly impossible, so taking Vitamin D Supplements is really the best choice for the majority of people.

However, the sun has always been the BEST source of vitamin d and can be used in place of vitamin d supplements, but only for those who live in southern latitudes (in the Northern hemisphere) and can expose their skin to midafternoon sun regularly. Those who are tan likely have enough vitamin D, otherwise you probably don't get enough vitamin d and you may need to supplement.

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Symptoms of Vitamin D Deficiency

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