For a man, too much vitamin D was disastrous

MONDAY, April 8, 2019 (HealthDay News) – Vitamin D is the healthy "sun" vitamin, but it can have a dark side, a Canadian discovered.

A team of Toronto doctors reported the case of a 54-year-old man who had developed kidney damage after taking extremely high doses of vitamin D.

It's a cautionary tale for consumers, say medical experts.

"Although the toxicity of vitamin D is rare due to a wide therapeutic range, its widespread availability in various over-the-counter formulations can pose a substantial risk to uninformed patients," said co-author Study, Dr. Bourne Auguste. He is a clinical researcher in home dialysis at Toronto General Hospital and the University of Toronto.

As reported on April 8 in the CMAJ (Journal of the Canadian Medical Association)The man was seen by doctors after returning from vacation in Southeast Asia, where he spent much of his time sunbathing. Vitamin D is naturally synthesized by the skin in contact with the sun.

The tests showed that the man had high blood levels of creatinine, marker of lesions or dysfunctions of the kidneys. The patient was then referred to a kidney specialist and further tested.

The doctors learned that a naturopath had prescribed high doses of vitamin D to man, even though he was not suffering from vitamin D deficiency and had no symptoms. history of bone loss.

In 30 months, the man had taken between 8 and 12 drops of vitamin D, between 8,000 and 12,000 international units (IU), per day.

The recommended daily allowance for vitamin D is 400 to 1,000 IU, and a higher amount (800 to 2,000 IU) is recommended for adults at high risk for osteoporosis and for older adults.

The patient far exceeded these doses, which resulted in extremely high levels of calcium in the blood. It is these high levels of calcium in the blood that have caused kidney damage, said Auguste's team.

"Patients and clinicians should be better informed about the risks associated with the unfettered use of vitamin D," the study's authors concluded.

Dr. Maria DeVita directs nephrology (kidney medicine) at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. In rereading the case report, she stated that "overconsumption of vitamin, as in many supplements, can have disastrous adverse effects".

DeVita said: "Vitamin D is necessary for the development and maintenance of strong bones, [but] the message to remember is too much, a good thing is not good. "