Negative reactions to vitamins

[Suzaku]

Have you ever been told you had a vitamin deficiency by a doctor and told you had to take a vitamin for it? Only to get sick from the vitamin and not realizing it was the vitamin making you sick the whole time?

Ever taken a vitamin people say you should start taking at a certain age for xyz reason only to find it made your condition worse? Like oh your stomach issues will be fixed by probiotics, only to get sicker taking them.

Could you share your story please? I'm curious to hear people's experiences.

I realize some vitamins are made with ingredients that could upset people's stomach. Also some vitamins are weird. Like most multivitamins don't have enough important things like selenium, stuff our body needs, yet we are being told take this and you'll be okay nutritionally.

[Animal]

This is why most doctors and health experts tell people that a balanced diet should be the primary means of assuring you're getting all the nutrients you body needs, rather than taking supplements with isolated micronutrients. Many vitamins and minerals are maintained in a delicate balance within the body. For example, potassium and sodium levels need to be maintain in proportion to one another for healthy cell function. Taking too much zinc can induce a copper deficiency. Taking too much calcium can induce a magnesium and zinc deficiency. Calcium needs to be accompanied by magnesium as well as Vitamin D, and Vitamin D needs to be taken with Vitamin K, etc. A lot of mutlivitamins have competing nutrients, which hinder each other's absorption in the body. And too much of anything can be toxic.

I'd be cautious about assuming "It was the vitamin making me sick the whole time." For one thing, sometimes the body needs to adjust. Probiotics, for example, can often cause stomach upset or digestive issues at first, but then settle down as your microbiome adjusts. I started eating a lot of fermented foods a year or two ago, and for the first week I had digestive symptoms. This changed quickly, and I ended up feeling much better in the end after incorporating these foods into my diet. The other confounding issue is that supplementing with high doses of one thing might have thrown the balance off in another thing, like with zinc and copper or Vitamin D and K.

We don't really understand nutrition all that well, honestly. After all, it was only a short time ago that we learned about the importance of things like phytonutrients and antioxidants. This is why I think just sticking to whole foods with plenty of variety in fruit, vegetables, and protein and fat sources is the best way of improving health.

[Suzaku]

This is why most doctors and health experts tell people that a balanced diet should be the primary means of assuring you're getting all the nutrients you body needs, rather than taking supplements with isolated micronutrients. Many vitamins and minerals are maintained in a delicate balance within the body. For example, potassium and sodium levels need to be maintain in proportion to one another for healthy cell function. Taking too much zinc can induce a copper deficiency. Taking too much calcium can induce a magnesium and zinc deficiency. Calcium needs to be accompanied by magnesium as well as Vitamin D, and Vitamin D needs to be taken with Vitamin K, etc. A lot of mutlivitamins have competing nutrients, which hinder each other's absorption in the body. And too much of anything can be toxic.

I'd be cautious about assuming "It was the vitamin making me sick the whole time." For one thing, sometimes the body needs to adjust. Probiotics, for example, can often cause stomach upset or digestive issues at first, but then settle down as your microbiome adjusts. I started eating a lot of fermented foods a year or two ago, and for the first week I had digestive symptoms. This changed quickly, and I ended up feeling much better in the end after incorporating these foods into my diet. The other confounding issue is that supplementing with high doses of one thing might have thrown the balance off in another thing, like with zinc and copper or Vitamin D and K.

We don't really understand nutrition all that well, honestly. After all, it was only a short time ago that we learned about the importance of things like phytonutrients and antioxidants. This is why I think just sticking to whole foods with plenty of variety in fruit, vegetables, and protein and fat sources is the best way of improving health.

Yeah this, exactly. That and some of the ingredients vitamins are made with. Some people don't get told what nutrients counteract absorption of others.

[Suz]

Have you ever been told you had a vitamin deficiency by a doctor and told you had to take a vitamin for it? Only to get sick from the vitamin and not realizing it was the vitamin making you sick the whole time?

Ever taken a vitamin people say you should start taking at a certain age for xyz reason only to find it made your condition worse? Like oh your stomach issues will be fixed by probiotics, only to get sicker taking them.

Could you share your story please? I'm curious to hear people's experiences.

I realize some vitamins are made with ingredients that could upset people's stomach. Also some vitamins are weird. Like most multivitamins don't have enough important things like selenium, stuff our body needs, yet we are being told take this and you'll be okay nutritionally.

Agree with everything @Animal said above.

In addition, I wanted to add that vitamins & minerals in supplement form can be difficult to tolerate for a number of possible reasons:

1) Some vitamins are just very hard on the digestive tract. Iron comes to mind. If you take iron on an empty stomach it can make you throw up or have bad abdominal pain. Additionally it can be very constipating. Magnesium can give you loose stools, etc.

2) contaminants/fillers. Most if not all OTC supplements are not FDA regulated, which means that lower quality manufacturing can introduce either contaminants or fillers that don't agree with some constitutions or are just plain toxic. Do your research on which source you get your supplements from.

3) toxic doses of the vitamin or mineral. many essential nutrients are micronutrients or trace minerals, which means that the body needs only a trace amount of them. Anything more than that could result in toxicity.

[Suzaku]

Agree with everything @Animal said above.

In addition, I wanted to add that vitamins & minerals in supplement form can be difficult to tolerate for a number of possible reasons:

1) Some vitamins are just very hard on the digestive tract. Iron comes to mind. If you take iron on an empty stomach it can make you throw up or have bad abdominal pain. Additionally it can be very constipating. Magnesium can give you loose stools, etc.

2) contaminants/fillers. Most if not all OTC supplements are not FDA regulated, which means that lower quality manufacturing can introduce either contaminants or fillers that don't agree with some constitutions or are just plain toxic. Do your research on which source you get your supplements from.

3) toxic doses of the vitamin or mineral. many essential nutrients are micronutrients or trace minerals, which means that the body needs only a trace amount of them. Anything more than that could result in toxicity.

Yes there are a lot of vitamins being sold at toxic levels or borderline toxic. 10,000 Vitamin D-3. Jesus @_@

[Suz]

Yes there are a lot of vitamins being sold at toxic levels or borderline toxic. 10,000 Vitamin D-3. Jesus @_@

Yep that is not a dose that should be taken daily for an indefinite period of time.

[Satan]

vitamin b2 makes my pee yellow

[huiheiwufhawriuhg]

I took a vitamin that made me sick, it literaly made me puke. I just changed the brand and I am ok. It's probably not the vitamin itself just try another brand.

[mclane]

Too much vitamin A can kill you for example.