Inositol Side Effects

Inositol is a necessary B vitamin.  This vitamin can be taken in supplement form, but that isn't always necessary since the human body makes inositol from glucose.  Inositol is found all through the body and eye lenses, brain tissues and heart tissues have the most inositol in them.

• When treating an inositol deficiency, the side effects of inositol are very beneficial to the individual.  People with inositol deficiencies may experience hair loss, memory loss, eye problems, constipation, high cholesterol and narrowing of arteries.  In these situations, the consumption of inositol can eliminate the aforementioned health problems.


• When a healthy individual takes a moderate amount of inositol supplements, he or she may experience a variety of beneficial side effects.  Inositol helps increase fertility and improves other symptoms in females who have PCOS, or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.  Inositol is used to treat eczema and helps keep skin healthy.  Inositol is an ingredient in myelin, which regulates nerve function, improves nerve function in diabetics and is used to treat nerve disorders.   


• Overdosing on inositol or other B vitamins is difficult to do, because B vitamins are water soluble.  If you overdose on water-soluble vitamins, the excess is excreted from your body in urine.  As a result, there isn't a harmful buildup of excess vitamins in the body to cause many side effects.  If you ingest more inositol than your body needs, you may experience a temporary side effect of diarrhea.  As with any other supplement, check with your doctor or pharmacist for any potential drug interactions with your prescription medicine or any other supplements you may take.