Should You Worry About Vitamin D Toxicity?

Published on October 14, 2024

Learn from one of the world’s leading experts on vitamin D toxicity, Dr. Reinhold Vieth!

Key Points

YES, vitamin D is used as a rat poison. However, “the dose makes the poison….” In other words, for vitamin D: “Vitamin D is not inherently toxic, but like anything that actually works, too much of it will be harmful.”
Around 32 ng/ml of vitamin D is the point at which calcium homeostasis becomes optimized and additional vitamin D will not make any difference for calcium absorption – at this point “It’s stable, the way it’s supposed to be in a regulated system.” Around 102 ng/ml vitamin D is the point at which the first evidence exists that the higher vitamin D level is driving increased calcium absorption, however, this is not yet toxic.
In this presentation, Dr. Reinhold Vieth discusses the basic science, clinical evidence, and the politics surrounding official committee guidelines related to the risks and benefits of vitamin D

The following presentation, Vitamin D “Toxicity,” was given by Dr. Reinhold Vieth, PhD, at the University of Minnesota on Sept. 18, 2024. In this presentation, Dr. Vieth discusses the basic science, clinical evidence, and the politics surrounding official committee guidelines related to the risks and benefits of vitamin D.

Dr. Vieth also reviews the hormonal role of vitamin D and its responsibility of maintaining calcium homeostasis. He illustrates how and at what point increasing vitamin D levels can increase the risk of hypercalcemia, and therefore, vitamin D toxicity. He also reviews the pharmacology of vitamin D; how vitamin D is metabolized, the different forms of vitamin D within the body, and the conversion processes. Several cases of vitamin D toxicity are discussed to demonstrate the difficulty of achieving true vitamin D deficiency, and vitamin D safety is covered via a review published clinical studies.

YES, vitamin D is used as a rat poison. However, “the dose makes the poison….” In other words, for vitamin D: “Vitamin D is not inherently toxic, but like anything that actually works, too much of it will be harmful.”

Learn more by watching this recorded lecture by Dr. Vieth. Click through directly to specific topics below.

The opinions included in this video are those of the presenter and are intended for a professional, academic audience.

Watch the Video

Key Points from the Video

04:08 – How does vitamin D affect calcium levels? A review of the hormonal functions of vitamin D.

07:03 – The Evolution of Skin Color: The relationship between skin color, sun exposure, and vitamin D for survival.

12:42 – The Pharmacology of Vitamin D: Vitamin D conversion and use within the body.

21:27 – A Case Study of Vitamin D Toxicity: What did it take for this father and son to reach toxic levels?

27:28 – What is hypercalcemia, and when can it be attributed to vitamin D toxicity?

33:39 – Current Vitamin D Guidelines versus Practical Clinical Data: What should be considered safe levels?

38:52 – What type of evidence exists to support higher vitamin D levels? Study type matters…

46:05 – Vitamin D: An Urgent Need for Reform. Why is there so much confusion around vitamin D?

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Measure Your Levels of Vitamin D, Magnesium, and Other Important Nutrients and Markers

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STEP 1 Order your at-home blood spot test kit to measure vitamin D and other nutrients of concern to you, such as omega-3s, magnesium, essential and toxic elements (zinc, copper, selenium, lead, cadmium, mercury); include hsCRP as a marker of inflammation or HbA1c for blood sugar health

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