Can Vitamin D Deficiency Cause Tingling of Hands and Feet?

Can Vitamin D Deficiency Cause Tingling of Hands and Feet? The answer can be Yes and No as well. But to decide which one is true, it’s important to read the whole article, so you can get a better idea whether it can cause Tingling of hands and feet or not. 

The human body is formulated so that it requires constant care and attention to save itself from outer attacks. We all are living in a world where catching diseases is much easier than staying safe and healthy. With every passing decade, artificial and junk food has made its way into our bodies that living without it seems absurd. This energetic modern generation is utterly in need of healthy and nutritious food to fight against severe and easy-going diseases. 

Food full of vitamins and other nutritious components composes a healthy body and leads to a healthy life. Each vitamin has its extraordinary functions to perform in the body. Even the smallest amount of deficiency of any particular vitamin can cause little damage to health, which eventually leads to serious health issues. On the other hand, the right amount of vitamins in the body lead to cure serious health issues like anxiety and depression.

Vitamin D and its Deficiency 

• Its functions in the body

Vitamin D is said to be the sunshine vitamin because the human body's skin absorbs vitamin D directly from the sunrays. It can also be taken from diet and other supplements. It belongs to a group of fat-soluble vitamins, which means that the human body can produce vitamin D on its own. It modules the calcium into the bones.

• What causes deficiency?

There are some reasons due to which vitamin D glitches in the body. Firstly, the body's skin fails to absorb this particular vitamin from the sun into the body. Secondly, the food that is taken does not have enough amount of vitamin D. Third, certain body organs, including kidney and liver, which produce vitamin D, stop developing it. 

• What health issues arise due to vitamin D deficiency?

Deficiency of Vitamin D can cause minor to serious health issues. The first thing to be affected by the deficiency of vitamin D is the bones of the body. The lack of vitamin D in the body fails to module calcium and softens the bones, usually called the disease of rickets. Other diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes and cancer can also cause by the lack of vitamin D. 

This article deals with the question that ‘Can vitamin D deficiency cause tingling of hands and feet?’ The medical studies proved that a lack of vitamin D in the body leads to tingling hands and feet. Further arguments in the article discuss how a lack of vitamin D causes the tingling of hands and feet. Before coming to the point, lets first look at the brief overview of the issue of tingling of hands and feet. 

Tingling of hands and feet- FAQs

What is Tingling? 

Tingling in certain parts of the body is a common health issue rarely taken seriously. Most people sense this tingling in their body, which refers to the troublesome weakness, light pain and numbness in the muscles of hands and feet. It feels like someone is pinching or pricking a needle in the skin. The medical terms for this issue are referred to as paresthesia and neuropathy.

 Paresthesia usually occurs due to the weak nerves spread in the muscles of the body. Medical reports demonstrated that less nutritious food could cause such common health issues. Some of the vitamins like vitamin B1, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 help maintain strong muscles, and lack of these vitamins leads to such trivial health issues. 

How is vitamin D linked to this disease?

Vitamin D is highly profitable for the protein family's growth and survival present in the nerve system. The sufficiency of vitamin D in the body protects the degeneration of nerve cells and helps in the growth of the stable and functioned nerves. Thus, enough vitamin D makes strong muscles and safeguard the hand and feet muscles to get numb or weak. 

Furthermore, different medical science scholars have proven that deficiency of Vitamin D is connected with a disease in which the patient has swelling in hands, feet, and joints. In this patient feels pain in joints, hand burning and will lead to tingling in hands and feet. This disease is called Rheumatoid Arthritis. 

What else causes tingling other than the deficiency of Vitamin D?

Other than Vitamin D, certain vitamins can be responsible for the tingling. Mainly, Vitamin B6, B1, B12, and E are particularly important for the nervous system. But astonishingly, a high intake of Vitamin B6 can lead to tingling in the feet and hands. On the other hand, if anyone having a deficiency of B12, then there are more chances of getting peripheral neuropathy.

Besides vitamins, some other factors can cause this problem. Consumption of alcohol is also one of them. There are some types of alcohol that can have an element called Thiamine, which can cause a deficiency of vitamins in the body and hence can lead to tingling. Furthermore, the intake of alcohol itself can be dangerous for the nervous system and chances are high of getting impaired nervous system due to alcohol. Some neurologists called this phenomenon as Alcoholic Neuropathy.

Moving forward to the other causes of tingling, some events can also be held responsible for this. These events may include an injury to the head in which the brain is compressed, and hence nerves can be damaged. Sometimes extreme shocking events can cause trauma and can crush nerves resulting in tingling of hands and feet. And finally, any injury to the spinal cord or any disc of it herniate the problem of tingling.

What are the symptoms of Tingling? 

The symptoms commonly attached to the tingling of hands and feet are dependent on its causes. Each cause has its symptoms. But the general symptoms are having sensations of burning in hands and feet, or sensations of having pinched by pins or needles, pain without any injury. These symptoms are generally associated with the cause of neuropathy.

If someone has a deficiency of vitamins, symptoms could be fatigue, digestive disturbances, chest pain, nausea, and increased liver size. If tingling is due to alcohol, symptoms could be like pain in hands, feet, and limbs. If you have to swell in limbs, it can also be a symptom of tingling.

How to diagnose Tingling? 

It is always good to see your doctor whenever you find anything disturbing in your body.

If you go to your doctor without any signs of tingling, the doctor may have the following options to diagnose tingling in hands and feet. These are:

• MRI, X-Ray, or Ultrasound can also be used to check bones' correctness in hand and feet.
• Doctors can ask your medical history, and while looking to your history, doctors can inquire about some symptoms and any medicine you are using.
• A biopsy of nerves or maybe of skin.
• You are testing your blood to comprehend levels of different Vitamins, minerals, or chemicals in the blood.
• The doctor can also examine your body physically alongside some neurological examinations to determine your sensory and motor neurons' proper function.
• There are some specialized testing techniques used to examining tingling in hands and feet. These are Electromyography and Nerve Conduction Velocity.

Curable or not?

It is durable, but it needs real efforts both from physicians and patients. The foremost importance is its diagnosis, if it triggered early and accurately, it could easily be cured. So, the first responsibility is on your shoulders, i.e., telling the symptoms to the doctors to react and treat accordingly. It is most important to eliminate the cells that are causing this disease; if they are not removed properly, then there are chances that they can regenerate their selves.

As we all know, that diseases which are inherited, are difficult to cure. If tingling is due inheritance, then it can only be improved, not cured. Taking an adequate amount of Vitamin D, B1, B12 and B6 can slow down its process. 

Prevention is better than cure. Tingling in hands and feet can also be avoided by making some lifestyle changes. These could be

1. I am taking Vitamin D, B12, B6 and B1 in daily life.
2. Quitting alcohol
3. Quitting smoking
4. Having a good diet plan may be suggested by the doctor
5. Try not to take any toxins substances
6. Having proper exercise, again, suggested by the doctor.

Conclusion

All this discussion comes to the point that vitamin D is a shield against tingling, but some other Vitamins can also perform a key role. Moreover, we also have studied that some elements can increase or decrease Vitamin D levels in the body, like alcohol and certain medicines. Absorption of Vitamin D in the body is especially important, so try to consult your doctor and inquire about medicines that they should not carry those chemicals to prevent the absorption of Vitamin D in the body because this stopple can cause deficiency of Vitamin D.

References

• https://medlineplus.gov/vitaminddeficiency.html
• https://www.healthline.com/health/tingling-in-hands-and-feet
• https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321423
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3461835/
• https://www.webmd.com/brain/qa/how-are-tingling-hands-and-feet
• https://www.medicinenet.com/tingling_in_hands_and_feet/symptoms.htm