Did you know that Vitamin A is needed for the proper growth and functioning of many parts of the body, including the eyes, skin, and immune system?
Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that includes two main forms: Preformed vitamin A (retinol, retinyl esters) mainly found in animal products such as meat, fish, poultry, and dairy foods and provitamin A carotenoids like beta-carotene that are converted to retinol found in plant-based foods such as fruits and vegetables.
What are the functions of vitamin A?
Vitamin A aids in the development and maintenance of our vision, as well as the normal functioning of our immune system and the growth and development of our cells and tissues. Vitamin A is very crucial for reproduction since it aids the embryo's regular growth and development.
How much vitamin A do I need?
How much vitamin A you need per day changes according to your age, sex and life-stage.
Based on the Philippine Dietary Reference Intakes by DOST-FNRI, here are recommended amount of Vitamin A intakes per day for healthy Filipino individuals:
Where can I get Vitamin A?
Vitamin A can be found in a variety of foods. Animal food sources rich in preformed vitamin A include dairy products, fortified cereal, liver, and fish oils while rich sources of provitamin A carotenoids include orange and green vegetables, such as sweet potato and spinach.
Apart from natural sources, Vitamin A is available in stand-alone supplements and most multivitamins and is routinely added to some foods, including milk, margarine and ready-to-eat cereals.
What happens if I have too little vitamin A?
Vitamin A insufficiency is uncommon because most people can obtain the appropriate levels of this vitamin through their diet. It can, however, happen to persons who have certain health issues such as celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, cirrhosis, alcoholism, and cystic fibrosis that make absorption difficult.
Mild vitamin A deficiency can lead to fatigue, infection susceptibility, infertility and in more severe situations, vitamin A deficiency can cause xerophthalmia, a disease that damages our eye health and causes night blindness, severe dryness, spots in the whites of the eyes, and eventually blindness.
What happens if I have too much vitamin A?
Vitamin A toxicity may be more common than deficiency. Vitamin A is fat-soluble, which means that any excess is absorbed and stored in adipose tissue or the liver until it is needed. It can become harmful if there is too much kept.
Skin problems, nausea, vomiting, muscle problems, bone pain and liver damage can all be caused by high levels of vitamin A in our bodies. It is especially dangerous during pregnancy since it raises the chance of birth abnormalities. Food supplements can deliver harmful levels of vitamin A, so be cautious.
Written by: Nutrition Officer I Lorelie C. Millares
References:
Department of Science and Technology – Food and Nutrition Research Institute. (2015). Philippine Dietary Reference Intakes: Revised on September 2018. Retrieved from http://www.pclm-inc.org/uploads/2/0/4/0/2040875/pdri-2018.pdf
Higdon, J. (2000). Micronutrient Information Center: Vitamin A. Retrieved from: https://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/vitamins/vitamin-A
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2020, November 13). Vitamin A. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved March 29, 2022, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-vitamin-a/art-20365945
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin A and carotenoids. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved March 29, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminA-HealthProfessional/#en1
U.S. National Library of Medicine. (n.d.). Vitamin A: Medlineplus medical encyclopedia. MedlinePlus. Retrieved March 29, 2022, from https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002400.htm
Vitamin A. The Nutrition Source. (2019, July 2). Retrieved March 29, 2022, from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/vitamin-a/#:~:text=The%20two%20main%20forms%20of,fortified%20foods%2C%20and%20vitamin%20supplements