# "overdosing" on vitamin pills **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 11, 2004, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602 "2004-05-11T10:35:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/1 "2004-05-11T10:35:22Z")
Is it possible to take in too much of a vitamin? What I mean is, between the B’s, C, K, A, E, etc. can it be unhealthy to have too much of any of them? I always have heard that the body will slough off uneeded quantaties, but some can’t be expelled and will ruin your weekend. I know some minerals and the like will be bad news in excess, but I’m wondering about vitamins, specifically. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/2 "2004-05-11T10:46:34Z")
IANAD. Vitamin C is pretty hard to OD on, as it’s water-soluble and can be expelled through urination. It’s possible I suppose, but takes some work. Vitamin A, on the other hand, is fat-soluble and can be stored for quite some time, so taking an excess amount over an extended period of time can eventually mess you up. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/3 "2004-05-11T10:52:36Z")
Yes, particularly the fat-soluble vitamins. In addition, Vitamin K is (IIRC) linked to how your blood clots, or doesn’t clot. People taking blood clotting or thinning medicines are advised to consult with a physician about taking Vitamin K. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/4 "2004-05-11T11:19:43Z")
> [@Sublight](#): > > IANAD. > Vitamin C is pretty hard to OD on, as it’s water-soluble and can be expelled through urination. It’s possible I suppose, but takes some work. You’re right, it would be very hard to overdose on Vitamin C (probably practically impossible from natural food sources), but truly massive doses of Vitamin C supplements can cause kidney damage or failure. My school biology teacher told me that large doses (but below _dangerous_ levels) of Vitamin C would cause skin problems, but I can’t verify that. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/5 "2004-05-11T15:21:14Z")
Too much vitamin A will kill you. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/6 "2004-05-11T15:45:42Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > Too much vitamin A will kill you. An excellent reason to avoid Polar bear liver: > [@](#): > > Polar bears are the classic example: as a pure carnivore that feeds on other carnivores (seals), they accumulate extremely large amounts of Vitamin A in their livers. It was known by the native peoples of the arctic that the livers should not be eaten, but Arctic explorers have suffered vitamin A poisoning from eating the bear livers (and there has been at least one example of similar poisoning of Antarctic explorers eating huskie dog livers) [Bioaccumulation](http://www.nebulasearch.com/encyclopedia/article/Bioaccumulation.html) ---
**Author:** ![glilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/48db29/32.png) [@glilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glilly)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/7 "2004-05-11T16:59:04Z")
Multivitamins that contain iron can be damaging in large doses. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/8 "2004-05-11T17:11:41Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > Is it possible to take in too much of a vitamin? What I mean is, between the B’s, C, K, A, E, etc. can it be unhealthy to have too much of any of them? Definitely. [Here’s](http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/topic100587667) a rundown of the various vitamins and problems associated with excess consumption. More isn’t always better. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/9 "2004-05-11T22:07:44Z")
Thanks for the info, everyone. Great link, **tremorviolet** ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2004, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/overdosing-on-vitamin-pills/244602/10 "2004-05-12T00:06:34Z")
One more thing. They are starting to add Vit B6 into a lot of things, including several drinks & melatonin pills. Over a long time, very high dosages of B6 can cause slow nerve damage.