Vitamin A was discovered in 1909. It’s good for your eyes, your ears, and your immune system. But, where does it come from? And more importantly, what does it do?
Forms of Vitamin A
Vitamin A is most commonly found in an ester form of retinyl palmitate. While this form may be the most common, it is only the beginning of vitamin A. When consumed, retinyl palmitate converts into several other forms of vitamin A such as: retinol (an alcohol form,) aldehyde (a retinal form,) retinoic acid (an acid,) and of course the most commonly recognized form of vitamin A: beta-carotene.
Helping Your Body
Vitamin A is extremely important in helping your body’s immune system function properly. Because of this, it is also commonly referred to as the “anti-infective” vitamin. It also helps with vision, bone metabolism and keeping skin healthy.
Vitamin A has also been shown to help reduce the risk of heart disease. In addition to helping reduce the risk of heart disease, it has also been shown to decrease the severity of measles in some patients.
Vitamin A Deficiency
Vitamin A deficiency is an immunodeficiency disease that is acquired through nutritional diet, or lack thereof. One of the most common symptoms of vitamin A deficiency is referred to as “night blindness.” Night blindness occurs during periods of the day where there is little to no light, and your vision becomes blurred. The blurring can be extreme, or very slight.
Vitamin A deficiency is also the leading cause of blindness in children, especially in developing countries. Prior to 1998, it was estimated that over 1 million children died each year from diseases and illnesses caused by a severe lack of vitamin A. To this day, anywhere from 250,000 to 500,000 children will become blind from lack of vitamin A, all around the world. Thanks to organizations like WHO (World Health Organization,) this number is decreasing.
In addition to blindness, children with vitamin A deficiencies are also more likely to have respiratory issues (such as asthma.)
Vitamin A Toxicity
Vitamin A is fat-soluble. Fat-soluble vitamins get absorbed in the intestinal tract. Due to the fact that fat-soluble vitamins are more easily accumulated in the body, they are also more likely to lead to hypervitaminosis than their counterparts (water-soluble vitamins.)
In acute cases of hypervitaminosis A, the person experiences irritability, nausea, vomiting, headaches, blurry vision (night blindness,) jaundice, and occasionally muscle weakness or abdominal pains. In more severe cases, the person will experience hair loss, insomnia, fatigue, fever, weight loss, bone fractures, anemia and severe, painful diarrhea. Fortunately, it is very rare for people in developed countries to experience any forms of hypervitaminosis.
Vitamin A and Pregnancy
The use of vitamin A should be carefully monitored and regulated by a doctor. Prenatal multivitamins with more than 1,500 mcg (or 5,000 IU) are extremely dangerous and can cause birth defects. This is mostly because so many foods today are “fortified” with extra vitamins, and most people can acquire their daily amount of vitamin A in their diet (if done properly.) It is important that your developing baby gets vitamin A – as it is required for the development of the heart, eyes, ears and the formation and movement of the limbs.
Any form of excess vitamin A or a deficiency of vitamin A can cause birth defects! It is important to consult your doctor about a prenatal or multivitamin that is only beneficial and not harmful to your and your baby.
Finding Vitamin A
Many people associate beta-carotene with the color orange: orange carrots, orange cantaloupe, pumpkin, mango, and squash. This is generally how many people get our daily intake of the vitamin, however vitamin A can also be found in eggs, milk, spinach, broccoli, kale, collards, cod liver oil and many fortified breakfast food cereals.
It is recommended that men over the age of 19 get a recommended daily allowance of 900 milligrams, while women get a recommended daily allowance of 700 milligrams.
When it comes to the best vitamins for digestion, you’d be hard pressed to find anything to match the aforementioned ones as it has been proven that healthy food with rich vitamins and proteins is the key to keep your body fit.
