Taking vitamin D supplements can also contribute to arteriosclerosis and even be fatal. In 1991,
several Americans died from vitamin D in cow’s milk. The supplement was added during the production
process, but the measurement was faulty. Dairy inspection revealed that the instrument used to measure
vitamin concentrate was broken, implicating the unmeasured addition of vitamin D to the milk as the
cause of the excess fortification. In a different incidence, the milk wasn’t blended properly.
Now this is where it gets complicated. Milk enhances the potency of vitamin D by up to ten times, a
fact that is routinely ignored by milk producers. Milk that has been enriched by 90 units of vitamin D is
poisonous and can kill an adult person. But milk with added vitamin D just sells better. If you feel you
need more vitamin D, then it is best to sunbathe regularly or go for regular walks. But avoid using
sunscreens.
It is also a well known fact that too much vitamin A causes deformity in unborn children. For this
reason, there is a law preventing the use of this vitamin in food. Yet this law does not apply to animal
feeds even though it is well known that vitamin A is accumulating in the liver of farm animals. Pregnant
women are warned not to consume liver to avoid damaging their babies. If taking extra vitamin A is
considered poisonous for pregnant women or unborn babies, it cannot be considered safe for the rest of
the population either.
B-Vitamins
Pyridoxine or vitamin B6 is a combination of six substances. Since most parts of this vitamin occur in
bound form, analytic methods fail to determine how much of it is contained in food. It is also not possible
to make any reliable statements about how much of it we require. Still the nutritional textbooks suggest a
1-2 μg daily intake, which is pure guesswork. What is known, though, are its side effects.
Vitamin B6 is often used as a drug. Its use is indicated for depression, premenstrual tension,
schizophrenia, and child asthma. It was considered safe until 1983 when scientists discovered a syndrome
accompanied by strong circulatory problems in the hands and feet of a number of patients who were given
large doses of vitamin B6. The patients developed symptoms similar to the ones caused by the drug
thalidomide (which recently has been reintroduced for specific disorders). Mothers who had taken large
amounts of B6 during their pregnancy also reported deformities in their children’s bodies. It took a long
time before the nerve damage was linked to vitamin poisoning. As it turned out, many patients, who had
been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, were poisoned by vitamin B6. There are many unsuspecting
people taking vitamin B6 today without the faintest idea that they are slowly injuring their bodies from
the inside out.
The statement that Cobalamins or B12 vitamins can only be found in animal foods, such as meat, fish,
eggs, cheese, etc., is plain false. B12 has been detected in fermented plant foods and algae. A deficiency
of this vitamin is thought to cause pernicious anemia and degeneration of nerve fibers of the spinal cord.
The argument that people who don’t consume any animal foods must have a B12 deficiency and endanger
their health is unscientific, unfounded and misleading. Apart from producing vitamins K, B1 and B2, as
well as energy-providing short-chain fatty acids, the billions of beneficial bacteria residing in our
intestines and mouth produce more than enough B12. The amount of vitamin B12 a healthy person will
require throughout his lifetime is about the size of half a pinky nail.
In addition, the liver can store B12 for many years and knows how to recycle this vitamin. This may
explain why vegans (those who don’t eat any type of animal product) eating a balanced diet almost never
suffer from B12 deficiencies (contrary to public opinion). I can personally attest to that. Before I started
eating purely vegan 35 years ago, I suffered from a severe chronic anemia. It vanished two months after I
stopped eating meat, poultry, eggs, fish, cheese and milk.