Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSigns and SymptomsDaily NeedsTesting Vitamin D LevelsSide Effects
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Signs and Symptoms
Daily Needs
Testing Vitamin D Levels
Side Effects
Vitamin Dis essential for maintaining strong bones and supporting your overall health. However, too much can be harmful and cause symptoms like nausea, loss of appetite, confusion, and depression. Excessive vitamin D may also cause kidney disease.
While you don’t need to worry about getting too much vitamin D from foods, vitamin D supplements can lead to excessive levels. Having your healthcare provider run a blood test is the only way to verify if vitamin D toxicity is the cause of your signs and symptoms.
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not regulate supplements the way it regulates prescription drugs. That means some supplement products may not contain what the label says. Whenchoosing a supplement, look for independently tested products and consult a healthcare provider, registered dietitian nutritionist (RD or RDN), or pharmacist.
Olga Rolenko / Getty Images
Signs and Symptoms of Taking Too Much Vitamin D
Vitamin D is required to maintain health. It also acts as a hormone, contributing to many processes in the body.Because it is fat-soluble, vitamin D is stored in the body’s fatty tissue and the liver.
While getting enough vitamin D to support your health is important, too much can be a problem. Below are thesigns and symptoms of taking too much vitamin D, also known as hypervitaminosis D.
Elevated Vitamin D Blood Levels
A healthcare provider can order a blood test to check your vitamin D level. High serum (blood) levels of vitamin D are defined as greater than 100 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL),with adverse effects seen particularly at greater than 150 ng/mL.
Optimal blood vitamin D levelsare generally between 30 ng/mL and 60 ng/mL.Experts do not believe that excessivesun exposureresults in vitamin D toxicity due to how sunlight activates different forms of vitamin D in the skin.
For example, a review of case reports of vitamin D toxicity found that many resulted in the overcorrection of vitamin D deficiency. In these cases, people presented with vitamin D levels well above optimal, ranging between 150 to 1,220 ng/mL.
It’s important to note that people with low vitamin D blood levels may need higher supplemental doses to meet and maintain an optimal vitamin D status. However, a healthcare provider should monitor this higher intake closely, checking blood vitamin D levels regularly to ensure they do not rise to toxic levels.
Consult a healthcare provider before takingvitamin D supplements. They can help guide you on the appropriate dosage you should take.
Elevated Calcium Levels
One of the main roles of vitamin D is to increasecalciumabsorption in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Because of this, vitamin D toxicity also results inhypercalcemia(blood calcium levels above normal) andhypercalciuria(excess calcium in the urine).
If you have too much vitamin D in your blood, your blood calcium levels should also be assessed. Normal blood calcium levels are 8.4 to 10.2 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL).Hypercalcemia is defined as blood calcium levels greater than 10.5 mg/dL.
Most of the symptoms seen with vitamin D toxicity are related to the associated hypercalcemia, which can be life-threatening.
These symptoms include:
In general, research shows that vitamin D-associated hypercalcemia only happens when extremely large doses of vitamin D, such as over 10,000 International Units (IU) per day, are taken over time.
Seek medical attention if you are experiencing symptoms related to vitamin D toxicity or hypercalcemia.
Gastrointestinal Symptoms
The most common side effects of too much vitamin D are related to hypercalcemia. This leads to GI-related symptoms, such as:
Altered Mental Health
Aside from the physical symptoms associated with too much vitamin D and related hypercalcemia, there may also be symptoms related to mental health. These include:
For example, one case study reported hypercalcemia in a 64-year-old person due to excess vitamin D supplementation of 200,000 IU daily.This resulted in altered mental status, along with other physical symptoms related to hypercalcemia.
The person was hospitalized and continued to be agitated and confused for 10 days, with blood calcium levels returning to normal after 18 days.
Kidney Complications
Too much vitamin D and the related hypercalcemia can lead to kidney complications, such as decreased kidney function, kidney injury, renal failure, and kidney stones. People with kidney disease also need to prevent taking too much vitamin D, as it can lead to serious kidney complications.
Numerous case studies have reported kidney complications related to excess vitamin D intake.
For example, a 65-year-old male took injections of 50,000 IU of vitamin D per week for one year. Upon admission to the hospital, he had acute (short-term) kidney injury, among other symptoms. Prompt treatment improved symptoms and avoided further damage to his kidneys.
Another case study involved a 54-year-old male who presented with a suspected kidney injury.Upon investigation, it was found that he was taking 8,000–12,000 IU of vitamin D drops daily for roughly 2.5 years.
Both his blood vitamin D and calcium levels were very high. After undergoing treatment for nearly one year, his calcium and vitamin D levels returned to normal. However, he was left with stage 3Bchronic kidney disease.
How Much Vitamin D to Take Per Day
The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin D for healthy people ages 1 to 70 years is 600 IU, or 15 micrograms (mcg), per day. It’s recommended for people over age 70 to get 800 IU, or 20 mcg daily.
This amount includes vitamin D you get from food, as well as dietary supplements.
Vitamin D is found naturally in a fewfoods, such as fatty fish (salmon, tuna trout), beef liver, egg yolks, and mushrooms treated with ultraviolet (UV) light. Vitamin D is added, or fortified, to some foods to increase intake in American diets. Commonly fortified foods include milk and breakfast cereals.
If your vitamin D levels are low, talk with a healthcare provider to determine how much vitamin D you should take to help bring it to optimal status.
Signs of a Vitamin D Deficiency
Most people in the United States do not consume the recommended amount of vitamin D.
People can develop avitamin D deficiencyfor various reasons, such as when their intake is below the recommended amount, they do not have adequate sun exposure, their body cannot convert vitamin D to its active form, or they have trouble absorbing it from the GI tract.
Other signs of severe vitamin D deficiency in children include failure to thrive, developmental delay, and dental abnormalities. Also, vitamin D deficiency can result in hypocalcemia (low blood calcium levels), leading to cardiomyopathy (a disorder affecting the heart muscle), hypocalcemic seizures, and tetanic (muscle) spasms.
In adults, vitamin D deficiency can lead toosteomalacia(loss of bone minerals) andosteoporosis(porous, thinning bones). Symptoms include:
The 25(OH)D level is the most accurate way to measure how much vitamin D is in the blood. It reflects vitamin D produced endogenously (inside the body) and obtained from diet and supplements.
Possible Vitamin D Side Effects
Generally, eating foods with vitamin D in them is well tolerated, and there are no known side effects from vitamin D produced as a result of sunlight exposure.
Supplementalvitamin D3may cause someside effects, such as:
Contact a healthcare provider if you experience these or any unusual symptoms while taking vitamin D supplements.
Summary
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and hormone that is involved in many processes in the body to support and maintain good health. One of the main roles of vitamin D is to promote calcium absorption in the gut to help maintain normal blood calcium levels.
You cannot get too much vitamin D from diet or sunlight exposure, but you can get too much from supplements. Too much vitamin D can cause health problems, including high blood calcium levels, kidney problems, and gastrointestinal problems such as nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and constipation.
Too much vitamin D can also lead to altered mental health, such as confusion, apathy, depression, irritability, hallucinations, and psychosis. Vitamin D status is measured using a blood test.
Most people in the United States do not consume the recommended amount of vitamin D. Signs of vitamin D deficiency include weak bones, bone pain, muscle weakness, bone deformities, and dental abnormalities.
Possible side effects of supplemental vitamin D3 include loss of appetite, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, and constipation.
19 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D.Endocrine Society.Endocrine-related organs and hormones.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D.Taylor PN, Davies JS.A review of the growing risk of vitamin D toxicity from inappropriate practice.Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2018;84(6):1121-1127. doi:10.1111/bcp.13573Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Wimalawansa SJ, Razzaque MS, Al-Daghri NM.Calcium and vitamin D in human health: hype or real?.J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2018;180:4-14. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.12.009Galior K, Grebe S, Singh R.Development of vitamin D toxicity from overcorrection of vitamin D deficiency: a review of case reports.Nutrients. 2018;10(8):953. doi:10.3390/nu10080953Office of Dietary Supplements.Calcium fact sheet for health professionals.Tebben PJ, Singh RJ, Kumar R.Vitamin D-mediated hypercalcemia: mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment.Endocr Rev. 2016;37(5):521-547. doi:10.1210/er.2016-1070Marcinowska-Suchowierska E, Kupisz-Urbańska M, Łukaszkiewicz J, Płudowski P, Jones G.Vitamin D toxicity-a clinical perspective.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2018;9:550. doi:10.3389/fendo.2018.00550Nguyen T, Joe D, Shah AD.Forget the phosphorus: a case of hypervitaminosis D-induced symptomatic hypercalcemia.Clin Nephrol Case Stud. 2021;9:1-3. doi:10.5414/CNCS110414Graidis S, Papavramidis TS, Papaioannou M.Vitamin D and acute kidney injury: a two-way causality relation and a predictive, prognostic, and therapeutic role of vitamin D.Front Nutr. 2021;7:630951. doi:10.3389/fnut.2020.630951Talarico V, Barreca M, Galiano R, Galati MC, Raiola G.Vitamin D and risk for vitamin A intoxication in an 18-month-old boy.Case Rep Pediatr. 2016;2016:1395718. doi:10.1155/2016/1395718De Vincentis S, Russo A, Milazzo M, et al.How much vitamin D is too much? a case report and review of the literature.Endocr Metab Immune Disord Drug Targets. 2021;21(9):1653-1659. doi:10.2174/1871530320666201007152230Bhat JR, Geelani SA, Khan AA, Roshan R, Rathod SG.Vitamin D toxicity due to self-prescription: a case report.J Family Med Prim Care. 2022;11(4):1561-1563. doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1525_21Auguste BL, Avila-Casado C, Bargman JM.Use of vitamin D drops leading to kidney failure in a 54-year-old man.CMAJ. 2019;191(14):E390-E394. doi:10.1503/cmaj.180465MedlinePlus.Vitamin D deficiency.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D test.MedlinePlus.Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3).
19 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D.Endocrine Society.Endocrine-related organs and hormones.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D.Taylor PN, Davies JS.A review of the growing risk of vitamin D toxicity from inappropriate practice.Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2018;84(6):1121-1127. doi:10.1111/bcp.13573Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Wimalawansa SJ, Razzaque MS, Al-Daghri NM.Calcium and vitamin D in human health: hype or real?.J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2018;180:4-14. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.12.009Galior K, Grebe S, Singh R.Development of vitamin D toxicity from overcorrection of vitamin D deficiency: a review of case reports.Nutrients. 2018;10(8):953. doi:10.3390/nu10080953Office of Dietary Supplements.Calcium fact sheet for health professionals.Tebben PJ, Singh RJ, Kumar R.Vitamin D-mediated hypercalcemia: mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment.Endocr Rev. 2016;37(5):521-547. doi:10.1210/er.2016-1070Marcinowska-Suchowierska E, Kupisz-Urbańska M, Łukaszkiewicz J, Płudowski P, Jones G.Vitamin D toxicity-a clinical perspective.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2018;9:550. doi:10.3389/fendo.2018.00550Nguyen T, Joe D, Shah AD.Forget the phosphorus: a case of hypervitaminosis D-induced symptomatic hypercalcemia.Clin Nephrol Case Stud. 2021;9:1-3. doi:10.5414/CNCS110414Graidis S, Papavramidis TS, Papaioannou M.Vitamin D and acute kidney injury: a two-way causality relation and a predictive, prognostic, and therapeutic role of vitamin D.Front Nutr. 2021;7:630951. doi:10.3389/fnut.2020.630951Talarico V, Barreca M, Galiano R, Galati MC, Raiola G.Vitamin D and risk for vitamin A intoxication in an 18-month-old boy.Case Rep Pediatr. 2016;2016:1395718. doi:10.1155/2016/1395718De Vincentis S, Russo A, Milazzo M, et al.How much vitamin D is too much? a case report and review of the literature.Endocr Metab Immune Disord Drug Targets. 2021;21(9):1653-1659. doi:10.2174/1871530320666201007152230Bhat JR, Geelani SA, Khan AA, Roshan R, Rathod SG.Vitamin D toxicity due to self-prescription: a case report.J Family Med Prim Care. 2022;11(4):1561-1563. doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1525_21Auguste BL, Avila-Casado C, Bargman JM.Use of vitamin D drops leading to kidney failure in a 54-year-old man.CMAJ. 2019;191(14):E390-E394. doi:10.1503/cmaj.180465MedlinePlus.Vitamin D deficiency.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D test.MedlinePlus.Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3).
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D.Endocrine Society.Endocrine-related organs and hormones.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D.Taylor PN, Davies JS.A review of the growing risk of vitamin D toxicity from inappropriate practice.Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2018;84(6):1121-1127. doi:10.1111/bcp.13573Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.Wimalawansa SJ, Razzaque MS, Al-Daghri NM.Calcium and vitamin D in human health: hype or real?.J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2018;180:4-14. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.12.009Galior K, Grebe S, Singh R.Development of vitamin D toxicity from overcorrection of vitamin D deficiency: a review of case reports.Nutrients. 2018;10(8):953. doi:10.3390/nu10080953Office of Dietary Supplements.Calcium fact sheet for health professionals.Tebben PJ, Singh RJ, Kumar R.Vitamin D-mediated hypercalcemia: mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment.Endocr Rev. 2016;37(5):521-547. doi:10.1210/er.2016-1070Marcinowska-Suchowierska E, Kupisz-Urbańska M, Łukaszkiewicz J, Płudowski P, Jones G.Vitamin D toxicity-a clinical perspective.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2018;9:550. doi:10.3389/fendo.2018.00550Nguyen T, Joe D, Shah AD.Forget the phosphorus: a case of hypervitaminosis D-induced symptomatic hypercalcemia.Clin Nephrol Case Stud. 2021;9:1-3. doi:10.5414/CNCS110414Graidis S, Papavramidis TS, Papaioannou M.Vitamin D and acute kidney injury: a two-way causality relation and a predictive, prognostic, and therapeutic role of vitamin D.Front Nutr. 2021;7:630951. doi:10.3389/fnut.2020.630951Talarico V, Barreca M, Galiano R, Galati MC, Raiola G.Vitamin D and risk for vitamin A intoxication in an 18-month-old boy.Case Rep Pediatr. 2016;2016:1395718. doi:10.1155/2016/1395718De Vincentis S, Russo A, Milazzo M, et al.How much vitamin D is too much? a case report and review of the literature.Endocr Metab Immune Disord Drug Targets. 2021;21(9):1653-1659. doi:10.2174/1871530320666201007152230Bhat JR, Geelani SA, Khan AA, Roshan R, Rathod SG.Vitamin D toxicity due to self-prescription: a case report.J Family Med Prim Care. 2022;11(4):1561-1563. doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1525_21Auguste BL, Avila-Casado C, Bargman JM.Use of vitamin D drops leading to kidney failure in a 54-year-old man.CMAJ. 2019;191(14):E390-E394. doi:10.1503/cmaj.180465MedlinePlus.Vitamin D deficiency.MedlinePlus.Vitamin D test.MedlinePlus.Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3).
National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D.
Endocrine Society.Endocrine-related organs and hormones.
MedlinePlus.Vitamin D.
Taylor PN, Davies JS.A review of the growing risk of vitamin D toxicity from inappropriate practice.Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2018;84(6):1121-1127. doi:10.1111/bcp.13573
Office of Dietary Supplements.Vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals.
Wimalawansa SJ, Razzaque MS, Al-Daghri NM.Calcium and vitamin D in human health: hype or real?.J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2018;180:4-14. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.12.009
Galior K, Grebe S, Singh R.Development of vitamin D toxicity from overcorrection of vitamin D deficiency: a review of case reports.Nutrients. 2018;10(8):953. doi:10.3390/nu10080953
Office of Dietary Supplements.Calcium fact sheet for health professionals.
Tebben PJ, Singh RJ, Kumar R.Vitamin D-mediated hypercalcemia: mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment.Endocr Rev. 2016;37(5):521-547. doi:10.1210/er.2016-1070
Marcinowska-Suchowierska E, Kupisz-Urbańska M, Łukaszkiewicz J, Płudowski P, Jones G.Vitamin D toxicity-a clinical perspective.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2018;9:550. doi:10.3389/fendo.2018.00550
Nguyen T, Joe D, Shah AD.Forget the phosphorus: a case of hypervitaminosis D-induced symptomatic hypercalcemia.Clin Nephrol Case Stud. 2021;9:1-3. doi:10.5414/CNCS110414
Graidis S, Papavramidis TS, Papaioannou M.Vitamin D and acute kidney injury: a two-way causality relation and a predictive, prognostic, and therapeutic role of vitamin D.Front Nutr. 2021;7:630951. doi:10.3389/fnut.2020.630951
Talarico V, Barreca M, Galiano R, Galati MC, Raiola G.Vitamin D and risk for vitamin A intoxication in an 18-month-old boy.Case Rep Pediatr. 2016;2016:1395718. doi:10.1155/2016/1395718
De Vincentis S, Russo A, Milazzo M, et al.How much vitamin D is too much? a case report and review of the literature.Endocr Metab Immune Disord Drug Targets. 2021;21(9):1653-1659. doi:10.2174/1871530320666201007152230
Bhat JR, Geelani SA, Khan AA, Roshan R, Rathod SG.Vitamin D toxicity due to self-prescription: a case report.J Family Med Prim Care. 2022;11(4):1561-1563. doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1525_21
Auguste BL, Avila-Casado C, Bargman JM.Use of vitamin D drops leading to kidney failure in a 54-year-old man.CMAJ. 2019;191(14):E390-E394. doi:10.1503/cmaj.180465
MedlinePlus.Vitamin D deficiency.
MedlinePlus.Vitamin D test.
MedlinePlus.Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3).
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