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Why do 'Vegetarian & Vegan' Vitamin Supplements...

Yithian

Yithian

Parish Watch
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...turn my urine a bright ('day-glow') shade of radioactive yellow.

Point of order, I'm neither vegetarian or vegan, but owing to the fact that I don't eat land-flesh (only seafood), Mrs Yith is convinced that I must be deficient in any number of things. Accordingly, she has me on Multivitamins and Vitamin-D supplements and they regularly perform the feat above. I drink a lot of water, and I'd say that the effect of a single tablet lasts for at least five or six hours.

Is anybody able to explain?
 
redoxon (huge vitamin c dose) can have this effect
 
I have this too. I take effervescent high dose Vit C every day. It's the food colouring they use.
 
redoxon is great, if you get a sniff of a cold, or theres one going round the office, a red a day will stop it in its tracks 9 times out of 10 ... not to be taken while hungover however
 
Several medical conditions, as well as general hydration status, can affect urine color.

A number of natural food items (certain berries, asparagus, beets) can also tint your pee.

Certain dyes or coloring agents in processed foods can also affect urine color.

Heavy intake of B-vitamins (particularly niacin) will noticeably enrich the normal yellow color of urine for some hours.

Why are you taking vitamin D supplements? Fatty fish is among the best sources of vitamin D. Vitamin D, like vitamin A, does have negative side effects if taken at excessive levels.

Medline info ... (Freely copy-able per site copyright provisions)

The usual color of urine is straw-yellow. Abnormally colored urine may be cloudy, dark, or blood-colored.

Causes
Abnormal urine color may be caused by infection, disease, medicines, or food you eat.

Cloudy or milky urine is a sign of a urinary tract infection, which may also cause a bad smell. Milky urine may also be caused by bacteria, crystals, fat, white or red blood cells, or mucus in the urine.

Dark brown but clear urine is a sign of a liver disorder such as acute viral hepatitis or cirrhosis, which causes excess bilirubin in the urine.

Pink, red, or lighter brown urine can be caused by:
Dark yellow or orange urine can be caused by:
  • B complex vitamins or carotene
  • Medicines such as phenazopyridine (used to treat urinary tract infections), rifampin, and warfarin
  • Recent laxative use
Green or blue urine is due to:
  • Artificial colors in foods or drugs
  • Bilirubin
  • Medicines, including methylene blue
  • Urinary tract infections
Click to expand...
 
would be interesting to harness this in an attempt to confirm or disconfirm the female ejaculation theory on that other thread ...
 
EnolaGaia said:
Why are you taking vitamin D supplements? Fatty fish is among the best sources of vitamin D. Vitamin D, like vitamin A, does have negative side effects if taken at excessive levels.
Click to expand...

I *eat* seafood in the general sense, but not extremely regularly.
 
henry said:
would be interesting to harness this in an attempt to confirm or disconfirm the female ejaculation theory on that other thread ...
Click to expand...

'Interesting'

:reyes:
 
Also...what kind of seafood do you eat most often?
Shrimps, prawns, lobsters, crabs - all have certain chemicals that may pass on a colouration.
Flamingos eat a LOT of brine shrimp, which gives them their pink colouring (via carotenoids). Maybe this works to a lesser extent with humans?
 
Mythopoeika said:
Also...what kind of seafood do you eat most often?
Shrimps, prawns, lobsters, crabs - all have certain chemicals that may pass on a colouration.
Flamingos eat a LOT of brine shrimp, which gives them their pink colouring (via carotenoids). Maybe this works to a lesser extent with humans?
Click to expand...

Sushi and mackerel, mostly--a smattering of all else you mention.
 
Mrs Yithian is being prudent and caring. Vit D is essential for the absorption of Calcium nobody wants weakened bones. There is a simple (?) test for Vit D levels available through GP , if she is concerned maybe you should get it done.
Apparently Vitamin D deficiency is common in the northern hemisphere, partly through diet choices* and /or digestive problems affecting absorption.
Humans manufacture Vitamin D , the mechanism is triggered by exposure to sunlight, lack of exposure to Sunlight is a major factor in maintaining a healthy level : Dark skinned people are less efficient at manufacturing Vit D, this is a problem in UK most of the time. People who are always fully covered or use high factor sunblock are also at risk as are those who do not get out much or lurk in darkened rooms staring at screens.

My memory may be at fault here, but I think it is estimated at 1 in 6 in the UK are at risk of Vit D deficiency

* oily fish, dairy products, green leafy veg are best sources.
 
Like Yithian, I only eat fish (or as I like to think of it, anything without eyelashes).

But I just have the cheapo multi-vits and so nothing Day-glo is emanating.
 
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Because I'm curmudgeonly, part of the reason supplements turn your pee fun colors is most of the stuff is water soluble and unless you're in a bad way your body already has all it needs and gets rid of the excess in the usual way.
It's a very neat way of charging people for a step up from sugar pills.
With that urine therapy stuff having some niche in the market, an enterprising individual could probably try selling the resulting vitamin enriched waters.
...

I'm trade marketing that, I'm broke
 
Shadowsot said:
Because I'm curmudgeonly, part of the reason supplements turn your pee fun colors is most of the stuff is water soluble and unless you're in a bad way your body already has all it needs and gets rid of the excess in the usual way.
It's a very neat way of charging people for a step up from sugar pills.
With that urine therapy stuff having some niche in the market, an enterprising individual could probably try selling the resulting vitamin enriched waters.
...

I'm trade marketing that, I'm broke
Click to expand...

You might well be correct--it's pretty difficult to assess whether you are actually deficient in something unless you are so seriously deficient that significant symptoms are being displayed.
 
If you have a balanced, healthy diet, vegetarian or not, you don't need vitamin supplements. I think it's a bit of a scam - wasn't there a study that found the pills don't break down properly in the stomach anyway?
 
GNC said:
If you have a balanced, healthy diet, vegetarian or not, you don't need vitamin supplements. I think it's a bit of a scam - wasn't there a study that found the pills don't break down properly in the stomach anyway?
Click to expand...

I do take your point, but there's no green light that pings on to inform you that you have a balanced and healthy diet. Different people absorb vitamins and minerals to differing degrees and, as in the case of vitamin D, much in gained by sunlight. That's a lot harder to gauge.
 
Yeah, but you don't need to be Magnus Pyke to know that a diet of junk food is going to be damaging to your health. A few fruit and veg every day go a long way to compensating for any lack of vitamins as a result.
 
I had to Google Magnus Pyke, you know.

Seems to have been quite famous back in the day but somehow I've never heard of him.

"In an effort to cope with the problem of blood donation outstripping local storage for blood transfusion, Pyke suggested using the excess human blood to make black pudding."
 
Man, I'm getting old... maybe I do need vitamin supplements...
 
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