What Happens to Your Body When You Start Taking Zinc Every Day

Zinc plays a key role in immunity, cell growth, healing, and healthy development during childhood and pregnancy. While true deficiency is rare, getting enough through food or a daily multivitamin can still offer important health benefits.

1. You Have Less Risk of Deficiency

Most people get enough zinc by eating a healthy and varied diet and by taking a multivitamin. The recommended daily dietary allowance for adults is between 8 milligrams (mg) and 11 mg, and it can vary if you are pregnant or lactating.

A zinc deficiency is rare in industrialized countries. The deficiency can cause problems with wound healing, slow growth, loss of taste and smell, and cognitive issues. In severe cases, it can even be fatal.

People who may have lowered zinc levels include those with the following conditions or risk factors:

2. You May Have Fewer or Shorter Colds

Zinc lozenges may help prevent cold symptoms or shorten the length of a cold, but the studies have had a high risk of bias (being sponsored by drug companies), had small numbers of participants, or used different methods and are hard to compare.

3. May Be Useful in Acne Treatment

People with acne often have lowered serum zinc levels, and both oral and topical zinc have been found to reduce the prevalence of inflammatory papules, both when used as monotherapy and as a supplemental therapy.

4. Your Bone Health Is Supported

Zinc plays a key role in bone development and bone repair. Researchers suspect zinc may also work to prevent osteoporosis. However, the optimal dose is unclear, and more studies are needed. 

5. Antioxidant Effect May Reduce Risk of Chronic Conditions

Zinc is an antioxidant that helps combat oxidative stress. Studies show zinc lowers markers of systemic inflammation. Inflammation and oxidative stress are associated with several chronic conditions, including arthritis, heart disease, kidney disease, and neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and multiple sclerosis.

Scientists suspect zinc supplements may help to prevent chronic diseases, though more research is needed.

6. May Support People With Type 2 Diabetes

Zinc may help lower blood sugar and cholesterol in people with type 2 diabetes. Research ties zinc supplements to reduced levels of fasting glucose, post-meal blood sugar, triglyceride, total cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol. Zinc deficiency may also play a role in the development of type 2 diabetes.

What Are the Side Effects of Zinc?

Most people taking zinc supplements have little to no side effects, although like any vitamin/mineral supplement, zinc can cause slight upset stomach if taken without food. Take zinc with water or juice, and not at the same time as any iron or calcium supplements.

Severe Side Effects

Severe side effects can happen if you take too much zinc, and can include:

• Nausea and vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Stomach pain or cramping
• Diarrhea
• Headaches

Zinc nasal sprays or nasal gels have been associated with a loss of sense of smell for some people.

Precautions

You don’t need a lot of zinc to be healthy. Zinc is what is known as a trace mineral. Most people get what they need from dietary sources. Because of the potential for significant adverse effects and interactions with medications or other supplements, it should be used under the supervision of your healthcare provider.

Dosage: How Much Zinc Should I Take?

People of different ages need different amounts of zinc. Eating a healthy and varied diet and taking a daily multivitamin usually provides all the zinc you need, without extra zinc supplementation. A prenatal vitamin may be enough for pregnant and nursing people.

But if a child or older adult is deficient, they may need specific doses of zinc supplementation under the supervision of a healthcare provider. If supplementation is needed, it is typically done over limited periods of time, taking plenty of breaks. Do not give zinc supplements to a child without the instructions of a healthcare provider.

What Happens if I Take Too Much Zinc?

There have been no reports of getting too much zinc through diet, but there is a danger of zinc toxicity from supplements. To avoid toxicity, be aware of the proper dosage, and be mindful of the suggested upper limit of the supplement.

For adults, the upper tolerable limit of daily intake of zinc, which includes from both food and supplements, is 40 mg. Too much zinc can cause side effects such as:

• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Loss of appetite

It’s not good to take zinc supplements for long periods of time, especially every day:

• If you take too much zinc for prolonged periods of time, you can lower your own natural immunity, impair your body’s ability to absorb magnesium, and lower your high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, considered the “good” cholesterol.
• Chronic and excessive zinc supplementation can cause copper deficiency and neurological problems as well.
• An ongoing prospective cohort study (one that follows participants over many years) of U.S. males found those who took high levels of supplemental zinc (more than 75 milligrams per day) were at higher risk for prostate cancer, and those who took supplemental zinc for more than 15 years were also at higher risk for lethal and more aggressive prostate cancer.

If you think you’ve taken too much zinc, contact the poison control hotline or go to the emergency room.

Interactions

Even though they’re not prescriptions, supplements can interact with food, medications, or other supplements. Sometimes this can be dangerous and cause serious adverse effects. With zinc, interactions can include:

• Various antibiotics can lower zinc levels and interfere with your body’s absorption of zinc; take the antibiotic two hours before the supplement, or four to six hours after the supplement.
• The drug Cuprimine (penicillamine) for rheumatoid arthritis and Wilson’s disease ( a condition in which there are high amounts of copper in the body) can be modified by zinc supplements, so take the zinc and the medication at least one hour apart.
• Certain diuretics (water pills) increase the volume of zinc lost in the urine, lowering zinc levels in the body.

This is not a complete list of interactions; before taking zinc supplements, ask a healthcare provider if it is safe for you to take them.

It’s very important to read the ingredient list and nutrition facts panel of a supplement so you know what is in it. Please review this information with a healthcare provider to discuss any possible interactions with foods or any other medications or supplements that you take.

Food Sources of Zinc

The best way to get enough zinc is through your diet. If this isn’t possible, fortified foods and supplements can be added. For vegetarians and vegans, legumes (peas, beans, lentils) and whole grains can inhibit the absorption of zinc, so supplementation might be necessary.

Foods that contain zinc include:

• Oysters
• Meat
• Fish
• Chicken
• Some seafood, like crab and lobster
• Fortified cereals