If you’re giving your infant vitamin D supplements look carefully at the dropper each time you dispense a dose say experts at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as you may be accidentally overdosing your baby.

Because some liquid vitamin D supplements come with droppers that hold more than the recommended 400 IUs of vitamin D, you could accidentally overdose your infant if you aren’t careful. The FDA has actually asked manufacturers to change the droppers on vitamin D supplements for infants so that they only hold the recommended amount.

Your baby needs vitamin D to help absorb calcium and to develop strong bones. It’s particularly recommended particularly for breastfed babies because a vitamin D deficiency can lead to bone thinning and warping, a condition known as rickets.

But too much is not a good thing: excess vitamin D can cause nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, excessive thirst, frequent urination, constipation, abdominal pain, muscle weakness, muscle and joint aches, confusion, and fatigue, as well as more serious consequences like kidney damage.

Tips to avoid overdosing
To keep your supplementation safe, following these tips from the FDA:

• Never give more than 400 IU a day to your infant, this is the dose recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends for infants eating breastmilk
• Keep the vitamin D supplement product with its original package and use only the dropper that came with the supplement to give the right dose


• Never use a dropper from another product to measure and dose vitamin D for your baby
• Check the units of measure on the dropper against the instructions provided with the vitamin D supplement
• Ask your healthcare provider if you should reduce or stop vitamin D supplements if you’re infant is being partially or fully fed with formula

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