Fat-Soluble Vitamins: The Not-Once-a-Days

We all care about our health, right? As caring and responsible people, most of us tend to take precautions – try to eat right, try to exercise enough, and try to keep up with a daily multi-vitamin just in case we happen to skip out on one of our recommended 5 to 10 servings of fruits and veggies. A friend of mine is so paranoid of this that she literally doubles up on her intake of every vitamin and nutrient out there, believing that she is doing the best for her health. Not every vitamin in that tiny pill is necessary to be taken on a daily basis, however, nor are supplements always a “good” thing. The difference between fat soluble vitamins and water soluble vitamins is one of the reasons why “overdosing” on vitamins can be a risky thing for our health.

Fat Soluble vs. Water Soluble

The majority of vitamins are water soluble, meaning that they dissolve in water quite easily and are excreted from our bodies through urine. This typically happens on a daily basis, thus requiring water soluble vitamins to be taken and replenished every day.

Of the 13 vitamins that human beings require, the 8 which are water soluble are the 8 B-vitamins and vitamin C. The remaining 4 are all fat-soluble vitamins: vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E and vitamin K. Rather than being peed out on an almost-daily basis, fat-soluble vitamins are absorbed through our intestinal tracts with the assistance of lipids (aka “fats”, hence the name “fat-soluble”) and are stored in our liver when they are not being used.

The Dangers of Fat-Soluble Vitamins in your Multi-Vitamin

As fat-soluble vitamins are stored in our body, this means that we only require very small amounts of these vitamins in our system at a time. The vast majority of people do NOT need to take vitamin A, D, E or K supplements as a result. If one does have too much of these four fat-soluble vitamins stored in their liver and fatty tissues, this poses a far greater risk for toxicity than, say, if you were to “overdose” on the water-soluble vitamins which are disposed of each day.

Overdosing on the fat-soluble vitamins may lead to any of the following symptoms:

• Nausea
• Irritability
• Blurred Vision
• Weight Loss
• Growth Retardation
• Enlarged Liver and Spleen
• Hair Loss
• Kidney Damage
• Skeletal Pains
• Skin Changes

Should I Stop taking my Multi-Vitamin if it has These Four Vitamins?

Goodness no! The chance of one “overdosing” and causing harm to their body due to having small doses of these four vitamins daily is generally outweighed by the benefits of receiving required nutrients that your body needs. You only need to be aware that it is important to recognize that any further supplements are most likely NOT required (i.e. taking a separate vitamin E capsule, for example, as well as your multi-vitamin). If you do have any concerns about ingesting too much of these vitamins, be sure to make an appointment with your doctor and bring your multi-vitamin bottle. Your physician will be able to guide you best and provide you with specific and tailored information about this fat-soluble vitamins and your health.

photo by Alexander Kalina