Vit C overdose, please help!

[Alexa808]

Have just found out that unbeknownst to me our domestic helper has been giving me overdoses of Vit C (1000 mg liquid supplement) on top of the orange juice and fresh fruit I normally eat anyway AND the 60mg in my supplement pill I take each day.

For the last 10 days I've felt dizzy, nauseous, had headaches, light diarrhea, have vomited and had backaches and light contractions. I thought I was just stressed and had braxton hicks, and now THIS.

I've called the doc but he's in the theatre. What I'm reading on the internet has made me cry in frustration and got me scared.

Can any of you kind mumsnetters please assure me it'll all end well? I feel really beside myself reading stuff about low birthweight in babies & scurvy...

I'm in SE Asia, ghosty.

My doctor said it's definitely over the limit of what a pregnant woman should consume and there is a school of thought that links Vit C overdose in the first trimester to spontaneous abortions. Later on and taken over a longer period it can lead to low birthweight in newborns.

It is water-soluble (sp?) but doses of this amount can cause kidney stones as Vit C holds the urine back. He said it's definitely a no go to 'sneak' any vitamin supplements into a pregnant woman's drinks over the cause of a few weeks and told me to report it. I am already on all necessary supplements and it's definitely an overdose he said.

Alexa, don't worry, the vit C is unlikely realistically to have caused your baby any harm if you've only been taking that dose for 10-12 days. You do pee out what you don't need - the only slight risk is that your bod can take a few days to adjust to the lower intake and continues to pee out a higher amount of vit C for a bit, causing a net drop in your vit C levels, but if you are taking a daily supplement it should be fine.

1000mg is a little high but quite a normal dose - if it was 10,000mg it might be more of a concern. You still need to get your symptoms checked, especially if they persist now that you are off the higher vit C levels.

This may or may not help you at the mo but bear in mind that a lot of "research" has been done recently to discredit vitamin supplements, as they are perceived as a threat to pharmaceutical company profits.

Hello thumbwitch, thanks for the reassurance. Was really shaken, but doc also said that the baby is 'finished' as it is now and no systems are being 'built', etc.

He has asked me to return today with regards to the nausea, dizziness and numb fingers (I drop a lot of things and it's really frustrating).

Thanks for the info, I didn't know this about pharma companies...but why am I not surprised...

You are up early/up late? Are you in Asia TW?

Try not to worry too much. When pregnant with ds2 I took part in a big trial. Thousands of women at risk of pre-eclampsia were involved and we either took placebos or 2 vitamin pills, they were 1000mg Vit C and 400iu Vit E. We all took the tablets every day from about wk 16 until delivery day. I can't remember specific details but I know I would not have taken part if I had any concerns about safety. (They did the trial because they thought taking these extra vitamins might reduce the risk of pre-eclampsia, but results showed IIRC there was no link afterall.) About a year after the trial I found out I had taken the placebos, but over a thousand women would have taken 1000mg of Vitamin C for several months during pregancy. It was called the VIP Trial if you want to google it. HTH.

Hi Alexa

Here is the email I received from the company I work for:

"Dear 'ghosty':
Thank you for your enquiry. We strongly recommend that people with medical conditions, allergies, are pregnant or lactating, and/or on medications consult their doctor before embarking on nutritional supplements.
Vitamin C at normal dietary intake level is considered very safe in general public and for pregant women. High dose of vitamin C may induce reversible loose bowels or diarrhoea. The dose at which diarrhoea occurs varies between individuals and also varies for each individuals at different time. People with certain medical conditions such as haemochromatosis should only take vitamin C supplements under medical supervision. An upper tolerable Intake Level is established at 2000 mg per day. NOAEL (No Observed Adverse Effect Level) was established as more than 1000mg. Currently no LOAEL (Lowest Observed Adverse Effect Level) has been established.
If your friend is concerned, she would need to consult with her doctor or specialist."

I think your main concern would be the actual quality of the supplement your maid was giving you (eg, what else is in there other than the vit C). When you take supplements it is really wise to make sure you are taking a good quality supplement that adheres to Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and is of pharmaceutical grade standard (ie, tested to the same standard of pharmaceutical drugs).
BTW I totally agree with thumbwitch about the move to discredit vitamin supplements. Sad but true.

Please don't worry. I'm 32 weeks and have been taking 2000mg a day throughout. Vit C is non toxic and you get rid of any excess. The RDAs that you see quoted are minimum levels required to avoid deficiency related ailments, not to ensure optimum health.

Having said all that you should get your symptoms checked as it may be something totally unrelated.

Hi Alexa - sorry, I went to bed shortly after posting - no I am not in Asia, but am a late night owl. DS goes to bed a little late and I start work (freelance) when he is asleep (and tend to get sucked into MN threads as well!! )

Hello everyone, thank you so much for all your replies.

Ghosty, I really appreciate you asking your company. My doc was concerned and said that over 2 weeks all the symptoms I have seem to indicate an overdose as my bloods, sugar and heartrate are fine. Other stuff in there was Sodium 61mg, Vit E 2.3mg, Niacinamide 2.3mg.

Kinki, thanks for the info, this is really interesting, I had never heard of this trial.

Beaufies, thanks, I'm seeing my doc again on Monday.

Thumbwitch, I know what you mean. I can spend hours hunched over my computer