Vitamin A - Importance, Sources, Health Benefits & Risks

Vitamin A is a vitamin that can be found in many vegetables, fruits, eggs, milk, meat, and fish. Vitamin A can also be prepared in a laboratory using carotenoids. Some people take Vitamin A by mouth to reduce complications of diseases such as HIV, diarrhea, and malaria, to improve vision, treating eye disorders and to recover after eye surgery. Some take Vitamin A by mouth for heavy menstrual periods, vaginal infections, to prevent breast cancer. Some men take it to increase their sperm count.
Vitamin A is basically required for the proper development and functioning of our immune system, skin, and many other parts of our body.

Vitamin A is found in different forms-

Vitamin A is found in our body in the preformed state, which is in their ‘ready to use’ forms as retinol, retinal and retinoic acid. Although our 
• Retinol – It is an active form of Vitamin A found in blood.
• Preformed Vitamin A - It occurs in meat, fish, and dairy products.
• Provitamin A - It is found in fruits, vegetables, and plant-based products in the form of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene & beta-cryptoxanthin.

Recommended Dosage:

Knowing proper dosage of nutrients for the body is a must. The recommended dosage of vitamin A per day is:
Men: 900mcg
Women: 700mcg
Children & adolescents: 300 to 600mcg

Vitamin A is possibly effective for-

• Cataract:  Taking high Vitamin A in the diet lowers the risk of developing cataracts.
• Measles:  Taking high Vitamin A reduces the risk of measles.
• Breast cancer: Taking Vitamin A in their diet helps women to lower the risk of breast cancer.
• Diarrhea: Taking Vitamin A during and after pregnancy helps the pregnant women to reduce diarrhea after giving birth to a child.
• Healthy and disease free eyes: Taking Vitamin A also reduces the progression of eye disease that causes damage to the retina.
• AMD: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the major issues concerning old age people. This is related to some form of oxidative stress that causes cellular damage to the retina. Studies have found that increasing Vitamin A supplement reduces the risk of AMD by about 25%.
• Reduced risk to many hazardous diseases: Plant-sourced vitamin A is preferably known to reduce risks of certain life-taking diseases as Hodgkin’s lymphoma and many forms of cancer as lung, skin and bladder cancer.
More benefits to know..!
• Immunity at improvisation: Body has its own mechanism of defense and fights from illness. Capture of pathogens becomes easier when your defense mechanism is at its best. Appropriate vitamin A content in the body does the job right. 
• Acne away: Vitamin A is essential for good skin health. It is mandatory for shiny skin, luscious locks of hair and puts acne away. The one who is victims of frequent acne problems needs to look for more vitamin A in their diet. 
• The fitness of bone: Growth requires all kinds of nutrients. Vitamin A is one of those essential nutrients. Don’t put yourself more prone towards easy bone injuries and fractures and keep care about Vitamin A well. An observational study about bone health and care found a high amount of vitamin A in body shows reduced risk to fractures. And by luck, if you are a teenager, taking care of vitamin A content can aid you to get a few more inches. 
• Repaired skin and rejuvenated cells: your skin suffers many struggles on a daily basis, a constant repair is thus important. Vitamin A maintains skin health, balances its moisture content and prevents dryness. Dry, itchy and inflamed skin or problems like eczema can be sorted by taking care of proper vitamin A.
• Say No to frequent infections: Bring your body’s vitamin A content at optimum and say bye to frequent infections. It has been known that high levels of provitamin A as carotenoids (usually found in plant products like radish) reduces chances of chest and throat infections.

Vitamin A is possibly ineffective for-

• Head Cancer.
• Neck Cancer.
• Tuberculosis.
• Miscarriage.
• Melanoma.
• HIV Transmission.

Side effects of Vitamin A overdose!

Although Vitamin A overdose is rarely seen certain complications can occur if the vitamin is more than required in your diet and body. These side effects include problems as:
• Fatigue.
• Irritability.
• Mental Change.
• Stomach discomfort.
• Vomiting.
• Excessive Sweating.
• Swelling of bones.
• Mouth Ulcers.
• Vision Changes.

Vitamin A is safe if taken in a recommend amount either by mouth or as a shot into the muscles. People who eat low-fat dairy products, a lot of fruits and vegetables usually don’t need Vitamin A supplements.

Know who is more prone to Vitamin A deficiency?

People at high risk of Vitamin A deficiency are: 

• All pregnant women
• Breastfeeding Mothers
• Infants and children with lack of proper nutrition
• Patients of cystic fibrosis
• People with chronic diarrhea

Vitamin A is present in following food items-

• Eggs.
• Tofu.
• Nuts.
• Seeds.
• Noodles.
• Rice.
• Pasta.
• Milk.
• Yogurt.

The signs of Vitamin A deficiency are-

• Dry Eyes or the inability to produce tears.
• Dry skin or the inability in development of eczema.
• Infertility.
• Throat Infection.
• Chest Infection.
• Delayed Growth.
• Night Blindness.
• Poor Wound Healing.
• Acne

Good Sources of Vitamin A are -

• Fish
• Meat (Especially Liver)
• Butter
• Cheese
• Broccoli
• Green Leaf Vegetables
• Carrot
• Squash
• Papayas
• Mango
• Sweet Potato
• Egg
• Milk
• Pumpkin

Go for good health by opting Vitamin A rich foods over the junk items that you usually crave for. Know what your body needs to keep you healthy and disease free.  Choose goodness of health.

Tags: Vitamin A sources, Vitamin A function, Vitamin A benefits, What is vitamin A good for

About Gaurav Dhingra

Hi..I am Gaurav Dhingra..completed engineering from SRM unviersity..and doing gym since last one year..and giving personal training from last 6 months with diet and proper workouts