Can you overdose on supplements?

Dietary supplements, regardless of the purpose of taking them, our age and condition, are subject to the same principle as all foods: too much of anything is unhealthy. In the pursuit of better health, a slimmer figure, performance or stronger muscles, we sometimes overzealously exercise, diet or supplementation. We also often want to find shortcuts. If you are asking yourself whether you can overdose on supplements, you probably know the answer subcutaneously. Yes, you can, and the effects of an overdose can be very dangerous to your health.

Today we will introduce you to the most common effects of overdosing on popular products that are on our shelves. We will look at both products that replenish deficiencies and supplements for athletes and people who are trying to improve their figure.

You can overdose on anything

When we think about it more deeply, there is no such thing that would not be a burden on our body in excess. Even water, which we encourage to drink at every turn (let's face it, most of us drink far too little of it), in extreme quantities leads to electrolyte imbalance in the body, digestive disorders, nausea, and burden on the kidneys and heart.

As the popularity of supplements continues to grow, and their consumption has been further intensified by the pandemic (in 2020, the global dietary supplement market reached a record $140 billion ), it is worth noting that health-promoting preparations can be overdosed and their use must be subject to common sense, as well as limitations related to the manufacturer's recommendations.

Tips for taking supplements

We have gathered in one place a few basic issues that you should remember when taking various preparations or considering introducing them to your diet:

• Regular check-ups - knowledge of the condition of our body is necessary to plan further steps in the field of health. If we do not have periodic check-ups, we risk overlooking diseases in the early stages, vitamin and mineral deficiencies that are dangerous to health, as well as element surpluses. Supplementation without awareness of what is happening in our body is not a good idea.

• Vigilance and observation of what the body tells us - busy, in the daily grind, we often ignore the signals that the body sends us. We downplay symptoms that may indicate various dangerous health conditions or reactions between the health products we take and the medications. Each of us is different, has a different health history, a different body and different, unique reactions to individual substances. Supplements available on the market are subject to control, and their manufacturers use substances that have been extensively tested for health. Nevertheless, we encourage you to carefully observe your body and record the effect of supplements on its functioning - also to be able to make the best use of the effects of active compounds and choose the right preparations.

• Avoiding extremes - avitaminosis is just as dangerous as an excess of vitamins, or hypervitaminosis. Some of us like to go from one extreme to another: we find out that we have some deficiencies in our body and immediately go on an aggressive offensive. We improve our diet and start taking supplements in droves. The combination of a rigorous change of diet with multi-directional supplementation, without consulting a doctor or dietician, sounds like a recipe for problems. The ancients invented the principle of the golden mean - let's not reinvent the wheel and let's apply it to life - in every area.

• Increased caution in the case of pregnancy and illness - pregnant women should absolutely consult their doctor about supplementation. Many preparations are absolutely excluded during the entire pregnancy and postpartum period, others are recommended, but in special, reduced doses, and yet another group is recommended in increased quantities. The same applies to many illnesses - patients experiencing chronic diseases, as well as those who are ill periodically, are obliged to inform their doctor about all supplements they are taking and consult with him about the possible introduction of new preparations.

• Keeping to the recommended dosage - manufacturers of supplements available on the market strictly define the way they should be taken, from a single dose, through frequency, to the recommended length of use (if this is relevant to a specific preparation). Any dosage of supplements is associated with the risk of side effects and the lack of effects that we expect when taking the preparation.

• Be careful when combining multivitamin and other multi-ingredient supplements - complex supplements - as the name suggests - consist of two, several, or many ingredients, and their consumption without consulting a doctor or dietician may be associated with unpleasant and dangerous health consequences. When, for example, two supplements contain a high dose of one ingredient, their effects accumulate and may cause an undesirable excess of this compound in the body. In addition, some ingredients of separately taken preparations may react and mutually reinforce, weaken or cause unintended side effects. That is why we always suggest consulting a doctor before combining multi-ingredient preparations on your own (common sense suggests that combining a multivitamin preparation with a multi-ingredient weight loss supplement does not sound dangerous, because these products belong to different categories - at this point we only suggest prudence!).

Can you overdose on nutrient supplements?

Most of us have one, two or more supplements on hand to replenish deficiencies or boost immunity during periods of increased cold and flu incidence. Vitamin and mineral preparations can be inadvertently overdosed on, and the effects of such an overdose can be serious.

Below we list the most popular ingredients we take to support our health and point out the effects of their excess in the blood and tissues.

• Magnesium overdose - Magnesium overdose can manifest itself as diarrhea or, conversely, constipation, as well as dizziness and headache; people with kidney disease, suffering from hypothyroidism, and those undergoing psychiatric treatment with lithium preparations are particularly susceptible to hypermagnesemia.

• Potassium overdose - excess potassium (hyperkalemia) leads to heart rhythm disturbances, muscle weakness and sensory disturbances.

• Iron overdose - iron overdose can cause constipation, dizziness, nausea, chronic fatigue, sleep problems, dry skin and hair loss; excess iron is usually associated with an innate tendency to accumulate this element in the liver; however, it is worth being vigilant and testing yourself regularly to find out if your body is properly absorbing this element.

• Chromium overdose - an overdose of chromium, which is involved in protein metabolism and fatty acid synthesis, leads to reduced iron absorption; this element also has a mutagenic effect - its excess in the diet can result in damage to DNA structures; chromium supplementation, popular especially among people struggling with unnecessary kilograms, should be used in accordance with the recommendations of the manufacturers of the preparations

• Water-soluble vitamins - excess of this type of vitamin will be excreted in the urine, so an overdose is unlikely:
• Vitamin C overdose - increased intake of vitamin C in some people can cause kidney stones to form. Taking extremely high amounts of vitamin C can also lead to digestive and nervous system problems.
• Vitamin B overdose - in the case of B vitamins, the possibility and harmfulness of their overdose depends on the individual variants. You do not have to worry about overdosing on vitamins B1 and B2 - they dissolve too poorly in the intestines and our body perfectly protects us from the possibility of an overdose. The situation is different in the case of the other vitamins from this group - in excess, each of them can cause unpleasant and relatively dangerous effects.

• Fat-soluble vitamins - this group of vitamins is stored in excess in our tissues; fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K:
• Vitamin A overdose (i.e. retinol) - in high concentrations it causes serious poisoning and a number of ailments.
• Vitamin K overdose - you should be especially careful about overdosing on this vitamin, as its excess in the blood can lead to anemia.
• Vitamin E Overdose - An overdose of vitamin E can lead to headaches, fatigue, vision problems, and digestive problems. It is difficult to overdose on vitamin E, but long-term supplementation in high doses is not a good idea.
• Vitamin D overdose - overdose of vitamin D leads to increased calcium levels in the blood, which results in calcification of internal organs. In addition, excess vitamin D may be associated with digestive problems, drowsiness and depression.

Hypervitaminosis is primarily a risk for those who take several vitamin preparations at the same time without consulting a doctor. An overdose of some vitamins and may also occur as a result of using a poorly varied, repetitive diet for a long time. It is also worth bearing in mind that some diseases may reduce tolerance to increased presence of individual vitamins.

Can you overdose on supplements for strength, mass, performance, metabolism?

Gym regulars have a lot to say about this. Protein supplements, while incredibly useful for building muscle and mass, and for post-workout recovery, can be overdosed on for the simple reason that you can overdose on protein itself, regardless of its source.

Below is a list of the most popular types of preparations that support our fitness and work on our figure, along with the effects of their overdose.

• Protein supplement overdose - when we metabolize proteins, our body produces amino groups, the excess of which is excreted in the urine. However, excess amino groups burden the kidneys, forcing them to work harder. In extreme cases, this organ can even be damaged. You probably remember the controversy surrounding the Dukan diet - increased protein intake over a longer period of time caused serious kidney strain, acidification of the body, and even kidney stones in some people. Overproteinization also burdens the liver and the entire digestive system. Professional bodybuilders, preparing for competitions, often experience digestive problems related to excess protein in the diet. They most often complain about indigestion, nausea, distended intestines, annoying flatulence, and constipation. With an increased amount of protein in the diet, it is necessary to provide yourself with an adequate amount of fiber, which will help with digestion.

• Overdose of BCAA supplements - BCAA preparations are used to stimulate protein synthesis and better release of anabolic hormones. They also guarantee effective regeneration after training. However, an overdose of branched-chain amino acids can lead to liver and kidney dysfunction.

• Creatine overdose - this ingredient is one of the very safe dietary supplements, however, its excessive consumption causes significant water retention in the body, a feeling of heaviness, diarrhea and muscle cramps. In the case of long-term consumption of too high doses of creatine, increased production of formaldehyde is observed, which is a toxic and dangerous substance to health.

• Preparations with caffeine, piperine, guarana, etc. - this group of supplements serves to accelerate metabolic processes, stimulate the body, improve concentration, mindfulness, reaction speed, etc. Just as it is not advisable to consume coffee and tea without restrictions, it is also absolutely discouraged to overuse products based on caffeine and other stimulating active ingredients. Our heart and nervous and digestive systems like a little stimulation, but they absolutely cannot stand long-term mobilization (both artificially induced and resulting from external conditions). People complaining about heart and vascular ailments should be especially careful with stimulating supplements, because side effects such as anxiety or heart palpitations are as unpleasant as they are dangerous to health.

Rational supplementation

We hope that the above list will lead you to sensible conclusions. Supplements can be overdosed, so their consumption should be planned and done consciously. Supplementation brings the best results if it is properly matched to our health, diet, age, gender, lifestyle and training goals. In addition, we all benefit from regular periodic tests and vigilance to the changing states of our body. Let's use the achievements of medicine and sports dietetics, because they are really impressive, but let's do it wisely!

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