Number to the left is for men and number to the right is for women. Reference gives RDAs for other age groups. The U.S. RDA is used as a standard for nutritional labeling. The Food and Drug Administration has proposed changes in this labeling. Symptoms of Toxicities Table 1 gives the symptoms of vitamin and mineral toxicities.
Toxicities occur at lower intake levels in infants, children, and pregnant and lactating women.
If a woman takes excessive amounts of many vitamins and minerals while pregnant her child can be affected. Table 1 also gives the lowest doses at which toxicities have been reported in reliable scientific publications. The literature contains many case studies where nutrient overdoses are presumed to affect health adversely. The nutrient amounts and time that people with toxicity problems took the nutrients are frequently not given so it is difficult to determine minimum toxicity levels. Size, age, sex, genetic background, as well as general health and previous nutritional status of individuals also affects responses to overconsumption of vitamins and minerals.