Consuming Large Doses of Apple Cider Vinegar Can Kill You
Apple Cider vinegar is a healthy tonic. It is natural and provides the body with numerous health benefits. In fact, many studies have shown that apple cider vinegar cannot just be used as a pharmaceutical remedy for health conditions. It can also be employed in cosmetics to treat skin and hair conditions. However, taking too much of it can be dangerous for you.
Recent research found that taking too much apple cider vinegar can lead to severe side effects that could tamper with your health. If complications set in, it might lead to death, especially when you have underlying health conditions or are on delicate medications that apple cider vinegar can easily interact with.
This article is focused on the possible side effects of apple cider vinegar and ways through which you can take safe doses of it without putting yourself at the risk of taking too many doses that can lead to its potential side effects.
To begin with, the term apple cider vinegar keeps flying all around the Internet. Some people do not know and have not seen what apple cider vinegar looks like. However, in this article, there will be a brief explanation and description of apple cider vinegar
What is This Thing Called Apple Cider Vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar is a tonic, a natural one. It is made out of a combination of yeast and apples. The sugar in the apple is converted into alcohol by the yeast, then the mixture is left to ferment immediately after adding bacteria to it. The result of this process becomes what is then known as acetic acid.
According to research, apple cider vinegar comprises at least 6% of acetic acid. When it is concentrated, it contains high amounts of acidic compounds, despite the fact that it is regarded as a weak acid. Asides from acetic acid, apple cider vinegar is also packed with other forms of acid, minerals, and vitamins.
The mixture of these acids, vitamins, and minerals has been found to help in the reduction of weight loss and promote the burning of fat. Regulation of blood sugar and cholesterol levels, as well as increasing insulin sensitivity, are other health benefits of apple cider vinegar.
Side Effects of Apple Cider Vinegar
Despite the hosts of health benefits it has, apple cider vinegar has side effects if you consume it in large doses. Although it is health-friendly, it could be health unfriendly if you misuse it. This is the reason too much of everything is bad. No matter how good that thing used to be when you abuse it, you will experience its side effects. Everything should be done in moderation. Small and moderate doses of apple cider vinegar can improve your health and supply your body with all the health benefits it needs, but overdoing this will not speed up the health-benefiting process. Rather it will harm you.
Some of the side effects of apple cider vinegar include;
Delayed Bowel Movement
According to research, taking too much apple cider can reduce the rate at which the bowel moves. This can be dangerous, as food will remain in the stomach for so long before it moves to the lower digestive tract, where it stays for another long period of time. This, on the one hand, is unhealthy because it will also reduce the rate at which nutrients get into your bloodstream, and on the other hand, it will leave you in discomfort.
When you continue taking large doses of apple cider vinegar and notice this particular symptom, and yet you do not take caution or report to the hospital, you might experience what is medically termed gastroparesis, a condition that is common in people with diabetes. It occurs when food remains in the stomach and is not emptied at the right time because the nerves in the stomach have all stopped working. Some of the symptoms of gastroparesis include bloating, nausea and heartburn.
People who have gastroparesis and type 1 diabetes might find it difficult to time insulin with their meals. This is because they might experience difficulty trying to predict how long it will take the food to be digested and absorbed. Although more research is needed to know the extent of the effects of apple cider vinegar on blood sugar levels. However, taking up to 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar, especially for people with type 1 diabetes and gastroparesis, the time food stays in the stomach will increase, thus, putting their health in more danger.
Poor Digestion of Food
Too much ingestion of apple cider vinegar can lead to improper digestion of foods in certain people. In addition, apple cider vinegar has been found to reduce calorie intake by reducing their appetite. However, more studies showed that lower loss of appetite from too much apple cider vinegar can be a result of indigestion. People who consumed too much apple cider vinegar complained of loss of appetite and also severe feelings of nausea, especially when the apple cider vinegar was added to bitter drinks.
Bone Loss from Low Potassium
Although, there are no strong researches on how consuming large doses of apple cider can lead to the reduction of potassium in the body as well as the reduction of the quality of the bones. However, there are few reported cases of high doses of apple cider vinegar being a precursor to bone loss and reduced potassium levels in the blood.
One of these few cases is a woman who diluted 250ml of apple cider vinegar in water and drank it every day for 6 years. After this long period of time, she was rushed to the hospital and admitted with a very low potassium level and other abnormal symptoms and side effects in her blood chemistry. Asides from this, she was also diagnosed with osteoporosis, a condition that is not common in young people. It is one that causes the bones to be brittle and causes severe discomfort. Medical professionals who treated the woman at the hospital concluded that the high doses of apple cider vinegar caused the minerals in the woman’s bones to reduce in order to balance the acid in her body. From this case, a new discovery was made. It was discovered that too much apple cider vinegar can reduce your chances of new bone formation. The reason for this severe case is that the woman consumed larger doses than normal per day, and she did it for many days.
Erosion of the Enamel
Remember that apple cider vinegar contains acids, not just acetic acids, but other acids. As much as these acids are referred to as weak acids, they contain high amounts of acidic properties when they are concentrated.
The research was birthed in a lab, and that research involved the immersion of a wisdom tooth in bowls of apple cider vinegar with different pH levels. It turned out that after 4 hours, the tooth lost about 20% of its minerals. Although, other researches countered this, stating that the research was carried out in a lab and not inside the mouth where there is enough saliva to counter the effects of the acid, and also, nobody will hold apple cider vinegar in their mouth for up to 4 hours, such that it will make them lose 20% of their teeth minerals. Nonetheless, little evidence has shown that heavy doses of apple cider vinegar can lead to the erosion of the teeth’ enamel.
One of the fragments of evidence is a 15-year-old girl who used undiluted apple cider vinegar as a weight-loss aid. After a short period of taking it, her teeth began to decay severely.
Other Side Effects
Throat Burns
Research has found that the acid in apple cider vinegar can lead to burns in the esophagus, and one of the most common acids that cause throat burns in apple cider vinegar is its acetic acid. Although there are no cases of throat burns, however, one case showed that a woman’s throat was severely burnt after apple cider vinegar lodged there.
Burns the Skin
Thus the effect of apple cider vinegar is a result of its acetic acid. Running apple cider vinegar into your skin daily and in large amounts can lead to burns. People who use apple cider vinegar for the treatment of skin conditions are expected to use it with caution to avoid the complications of their skin conditions.
Drug Interactions
Apple cider vinegar has been discovered to interact severely with diabetes medication and some diuretic drugs. Its interaction with these drugs can, on the one hand, reduce your blood sugar levels, and on the other hand, it can cause a dangerous drop in your blood potassium levels.
Conclusion
In conclusion, apple cider vinegar can be healthy and provide you with a wide range of health benefits. However, you might notice severe side effects when you overuse it.
