How are vitamin supplements supposed to be added to your diet if they have 100% or more of the DV?

Question

Wouldn't taking vitamins with your diet be overdosing?

Answer 1

Not all the time, since a few days of excess sometimes balance out several days when you don't meet the recommendation. Also remember, DV totals are the recommended amounts needed each day for proper nutrition, and that recommendation does not reflect anything about harmful levels of particular chemical or molecular compounds.

You might only NEED 1 gram of something, but maybe it would take 5000 grams of it to hurt you, while another substance might be harmful at a much lower dosage, or a much higher one. As an example, take water. There's an FDA recommendation about how much water to drink each day- but drinking a lot more doesn't poison you or create an 'overdose' of water. (there is such a thing as drinking too much water, but only in really, really extreme situations).

Also remember that the recommendations are an average- not everyone has the exact same nutritional needs. Someone who is a long-distance runner needs a lot more calories to burn than someone who doesn't exercise, and different vitamins, too. Women have different dietary needs than men; children need different foods than adults.

So for any given vitamin supplement, that has 100% or more of a particular vitamin, you need to determine what it is that you will need and which vitamins you are short of or will be using more of than an average person before you decide right away that it's harmful. A little research might surprise you.

Answer 2

There are actually only 2 vitamins that if you take too much of you can overdose. One is Vitamin A and the other is vitamin E. These are the only 2 vitamins that are not water soluble and they will accumulate in your body if you take Mega-Doses of it. All others will wash through your system and you can not overdose on them.

Just a word of caution on vitamin B if you take too much at one time you may get what is called a Niacin Flush and that is just a feeling of heat and hot flash burning sensation in your face. But that passes within a few minutes.

Best advice is to take the vitamins but at recommended dosage and you will be fine.

Answer 3

Even with a well balanced diet, it is hard to get all your vitamins that you need. In addition, you won't overdose on any vitamin if you take a well balanced multivitamin from GNC along with eating a healthy diet. Where you can go wrong is if you use individual vitamins sold by themselves, like megadoses of vitamin E, etc. Stick with a multivitamin every day and you'll be fine.

Answer 4

Vitamin supplements are mostly a scam unless you are suffering from a specific deficiency. There is little to no scientific evidence that taking supplements for general health yields any benefit. As someone has mentioned already certain vitamins can be unhealthy in excess, A for example can kill you in high enough concentration and so can potassium and obviously the various metals, which are often used as fillers, can be poisonous in high dosages.

Answer 5

the best thing is to eat a well balanced diet and not take supplements. Many vitamins have fillers that you don't need in excess in your body.

Answer 6

putting too much of certain vitamins into your body constantly over a long period of time can do more harm than good.

Answer 7

i dont think that vitamins do that much for you anyway.