Vitamin A

Vitamin A also called retinol or beta carotene covers many functions in the human body. It is a fat soluble vitamin and vitamin a's major function include healthy eyesight, night vision, growth and bone development. Vitamin a was the first identified fat-soluble vitamin found 1913. Beta Carotene is also an excellent antioxidant and helps with the healing of infections. Any facts about vitamin a can be found in the vitamin list. A healthy diet should include 5000- 50,000 IU of vitamin a. Vitamin A can be found in natural food sources. Foods high in vitamin a include carrots, yams, pumpkins, yellow or orange fruits, beet greens, fish, eggs, liver, butter and tuna. Food with vitamin a usually is best served with a small amount of fat to help the fat soluble vitamins to dissolve better and be more readily available to the body for absorption. Vitamin A cannot be as easily lost through overcooking as water-soluble vitamins. Foods rich in vitamin a should be included in any diet, but other sources of vitamin a are also available for example as dietary supplements. Vitamin a helps the eyes to adjust to light changes and therefore the old fairytale that eating a lot of carrots can improve your eyesight has a grain of truth in it. Carrots are one of the foods high in carotene. But vitamin A also plays an important role in bone growth, cell division, tooth development and reproduction. Another important fact about vitamin a refers to the necessity of vitamin a for the skin, eyes and different mucous membranes in the body, such as mouth, nose, throat and lungs. They depend on vitamin a for their moisture.

Vitamin a deficiencies a are rare in the United States as well as in Western Europe. Effects of these deficiencies are seen as night blindness, dry and rough skin, decreased resistance to infections, slow bone growth and bad tooth development. More of concern in our regions is a vitamin a overdose. Vitamin a overdoses do not come from food intake alone, but lots of multivitamins have a very high level in vitamin a for the body. A smaller vitamin a toxicity shows several signs which include headaches, nausea, loss of appetite and dry, itchy skin. More severe overdose levels could include signs of impaired vision, slower growth and dizziness. Vitamin a deficiencies as well as overdoses can also lead to severe birth defects (e.g. infant blindness, growth issues). Large quantities of vitamin a have also been used to treat severe acne. This is not recommend as a general acne treatment, since those high levels can be quite toxic for the human body and should only be taken by supervision of a health professional.