The cupboard has a multinutrient. Then someone adds a B complex, or D drops, or a zinc tablet from last winter. Each lid looks reasonable. The number that matters is the sum.
We have already written the vitamin D ceilings in the age guide. This page is the rest of the shelf, and the habit that actually causes trouble: a second bottle on top of a first.
The short answer
- An upper limit is a daily total from food, water and every supplement, not a score for one product.
- Vitamin B6 is the one that changed. EFSA cut the adult ceiling to 12 mg a day in 2023. A "B100" sits well above that.
- Zinc and vitamin D have age-banded ceilings too. A child's limit is not the adult one on the back of the pack.
- The usual mistake is two products, not one high one. Add them up before you buy the next.
- This page is about the arithmetic, not about crowning one pouch as the safe choice.
What an upper limit is
EFSA sets a tolerable upper intake level where the evidence is strong enough. It is the highest daily amount not expected to pose a risk over time, for that age. It is not a target. You are not meant to climb towards it. The UL summary is the overview.
Some nutrients have no UL: vitamin C, B12, vitamin K among them. That does not mean unlimited. It means the evidence did not support a number of this kind.
The percentage on an EU label is an adult NRV, from Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. It is the wrong ruler for a child's safety. Read milligrams or micrograms, then the ceiling for their age. How to find those numbers on a pack is here.
The ones that actually catch people out
Vitamin B6. Adult UL 12 mg a day, including pregnancy, from EFSA 2023. For children, EFSA scaled that down by body weight: 4.5 mg at 4 to 6, 6.1 mg at 7 to 10, 8.6 mg at 11 to 14, 10.7 mg at 15 to 17. The 2023 cut exists because high long-term B6 is the dose range linked to nerve symptoms. A B50 or B100 is 50 or 100 mg. That is the first-phase clinic bottle, not a daily food in Europe, and not something to leave running because the pack is not empty. The B-vitamin page is here.
Pocket Kids, Teens and Adults each carry 3 mg of B6. For a four-year-old, 3 mg is already a large share of 4.5 mg before dinner is counted. One pouch can sit inside the line. A pouch plus a B complex often does not. Do not add a second B6.
Zinc, vitamin D, iodine, magnesium
Zinc. Adult UL 25 mg. At 4 to 6 it is 10 mg, at 7 to 10 13 mg. Zinc and copper share a route in; we wrote that separately. A winter zinc tablet on top of a multinutrient that already has zinc is the pattern. Ours is 5 mg in Kids and 10 mg in Teens and Adults. Count both lids.
Vitamin D. 50 µg a day from 1 to 10, 100 µg from 11 and in adults, from EFSA 2023. The typical pile-up is prescribed drops plus a multinutrient plus a fortified milk. We walked through that in the vitamin D by-age guide. Ours is 25 µg in Kids and 35 µg in Teens and Adults.
Iodine. Adult UL 600 µg. Children's ceilings sit lower: 250 µg at 4 to 6, 300 µg at 7 to 10. Seaweed tablets are the wild card, because the amount varies. A multinutrient with a modest iodine line is rarely the problem on its own. The iodine page is here.
Magnesium from supplements. The SCF ceiling of 250 mg applies to supplemental magnesium of the readily dissolving kind, not to magnesium in food. High supplemental doses are a gut story more than a long-term toxicity story. Our Kids dose is 100 mg, Teens 150 mg, Adults 200 mg, as a complement to dinner.
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Where My Daily Pocket fits
| Nutrient | Kids | Teens | Adults | Watch the ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B6 | 3 mg | 3 mg | 3 mg | 4.5 mg at 4 to 6. Do not add a B complex. |
| Zinc | 5 mg | 10 mg | 10 mg | 10 mg at 4 to 6. Count a winter zinc tablet. |
| Vitamin D3 | 25 µg | 35 µg | 35 µg | 50 µg to age 10. Add drops. |
| Iodine | 75 µg | 100 µg | 100 µg | Seaweed tablets vary. |
| Magnesium | 100 mg | 150 mg | 200 mg | 250 mg from supplements of the dissolving kind. |
The honest work here is the arithmetic, not crowning one pouch as the safe choice. If the numbers say one product, keep one. If they say none, keep none.
We still have no iron. Iron is the nutrient where a second product should follow a blood test, not a sum on this table. That page is here.
What we would actually do this week
- Put every bottle on the table, including drops and anything a grandparent sends.
- Add the daily amounts for B6, zinc, vitamin D and iodine. Use mg and µg, not %.
- Compare the total with the ceiling for the youngest person taking it.
- Drop the extra single-nutrient first, not the product that matches the age on the pack, unless a clinician named the extra.
- If a number is close, that is a pharmacist or a GP, not a second purchase.
In Portugal the DGAV sits in the same European rulebook. In Spain, AESAN. The numbers are EFSA's, not a national invention.
FAQ
Is 500% on a vitamin D pack too much?
It is 25 µg against a 5 µg adult ruler. The ceiling to age 10 is 50 µg from everything. Add the drops.
Can I give a B-complex on top of Pocket Kids?
Usually no. Kids already has 3 mg of B6. The ceiling at 4 to 6 is 4.5 mg. Dinner still counts.
Does "no UL" mean I can take grams of vitamin C?
No. It means EFSA did not set this kind of number. High supplemental C can bother the gut. Do not make "more C" a winter hobby.
Is your pouch under every ceiling?
One pouch can sit inside the lines we listed. A pouch plus a second bottle often does not. That is the point of the page.
Who do I ask if the sum is close?
A pharmacist or a GP. Bring the lids.
Sources
- EFSA, tolerable upper intake level for vitamin B6, 2023
- EFSA, tolerable upper intake level for vitamin D, 2023
- EFSA UL summary
- Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011
- How much vitamin D does a child need?
- B vitamins from food, bacteria and a bottle
- Zinc and copper
- AESAN
- DGAV
About the authors
Lina is a co-founder of My Daily Pocket and is certified in nutrition. Stanislava is a co-founder. They write the Knowledge Hub together.
Last reviewed: 15 October 2026.
Food supplements should not replace a varied, balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. No supplement is a substitute for a varied, balanced diet. Stay within the dose on the pack. This page does not replace a GP. If you are pregnant, on medicines, or a child has a medical condition, speak to a professional.
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