Vitamin A: Importance, Symptoms, Prevention & Treatment

Introduction:

Much as we take care of our diets and health, certain issues do crop up. Partly this is due to environmental factors like loss of nutrients in food due to longer distances, overcooking, etc. and partly it is because we do not add a wide variety of food items to our diets. If we are particularly fussy, there are bound to being deficiencies in the body. One such condition is a deficiency of Vitamin A. Developed countries rarely face the challenges of rampant Vitamin A deficiency; it is only the poorer nations of the world that suffer from it.

Importance:

When the diet does not contain proper doses of vitamin A, it creates a deficiency. It is a condition mostly affecting children. Many kids develop this after a bout of measles. Vitamin A is fat-soluble and is made up of components known as ‘Retinoid’. There are three forms of this vitamin- retinol, beta-carotene and carotenoids.

Retinol is the most accessible form and can be obtained from animal sources. The pigment responsible for adjusting to low light does not get manufactured in the body in the face of Vitamin A deficiency. This is why people start suffering from night blindness. Vitamin A is vital for vision, bone health, immune response, reproduction, skin and hair health and to maintain good health of respiratory, urinary and digestive systems. It helps in proper foetal growth and is essential for genetic expression.

Symptoms of Vitamin A Deficiency:

Dry hair, dry and rough skin, brittle nails, night blindness and low resistance to infections are some of the most common symptoms of Vitamin A deficiency. Since it is a fat-soluble vitamin, diseases like cystic fibrosis, inflammatory bowel syndrome and other gastric issues affect its absorption in the body. Alcoholism also leads to low absorption of this vitamin.

The deficiency of this vitamin must not be taken lightly as it can lead to partial or complete blindness if not treated in time. Children who had good levels of this vitamin in their blood either fought off measles completely or recovered in a lesser duration than those who were lacking this vitamin.

Severe vitamin A deficiency may lead to permanent vision loss or blindness especially in children. In India Vitamin A is given at government hospitals for free till 5 years of age in children.

Dr. M.G. Kartheeka, MBBS, MD(Pediatrics)

Prevention and Treatment:

• Children should be regularly given Vitamin A drops.
• Animal products are rich in this vitamin. Eggs, milk, butter, meat and specifically liver have abundant Vitamin A. Eat these regularly for preventing deficiency of vitamin A.
• Vegetarians must eat pigmented vegetables that include leafy greens, orange and yellow vegetables. Also, having milk takes care of a certain percentage of the daily requirement.
• If you have opted for Vitamin A supplements, take these after consulting your doctor as they can prove to be toxic in the wrong doses.
• Cod liver oil capsules prove to be a very effective treatment for Vitamin A. Please consult your doctor before taking them.
• Oral and injectable supplements can be taken to treat Vitamin A deficiency.
• A Low-fat diet is bad news if you have vitamin A deficiency. Adding oil, ghee, butter or even margarine will prove beneficial.

Vitamin A is not only important for normal vision but it is also implicated in maintaining a normal immune system, healthy skin, bone growth and maintenance of vital organs in the body.

Dr. Ashish Bajaj, M.B.B.S., M.D. in Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology

Foods High in Vitamin A:

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays a major role in maintaining body growth, vision, immune function and a healthy reproductive system. A general amount of Vitamin A in your everyday diet prevents the symptoms of its deficiency, which may cause excessive hair loss, night blindness, dry eyes and several skin problems. The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of Vitamin A daily is 900 mcg for men, 700 mcg for women and 300-600 mcg for children.

Foods high in Vitamin A1: Vitamin A1, also known as retinol, is only found in abundance in animal-sourced products, like fatty fish, liver, butter and cheese. Some of the food items that are rich in Vitamin A1 are as follows:

• Lamb’s liver (236% DV per 100 gm)
• Beef liver (713% DV)
• Liver sausage (166% DV)
• King mackerel (43% DV)
• Cod liver oil (150% DV)
• Bluefin tuna (24% DV)
• Salmon (25% DV)
• Goat cheese (13% DV)
• Butter (11% DV)
• Hard-boiled egg (8% DV)
• Trout (8% DV)
• Caviar (5% DV)

Vegetable High in Provitamin A

The human body is capable of producing Vitamin A from carotenoids found in plants. These carotenoids, including beta and alpha carotenoids, are collectively known as provitamin A. Vegetables rich in provitamins are as follows:

• Sweet potato (cooked, 204% DV per serving of 100 gm)
• Winter squash (cooked, 104% DV)
• Kale (cooked, 98% DV)
• Collards (cooked, 80% DV)
• Carrots (44% DV)
• Sweet red pepper (raw, 29% DV)
• Spinach (raw, 16% DV)
• Romaine lettuce (4% DV)

Fruits High in Provitamins

• Mango (20% DV per serving)
• Pink or red grapefruit (16% DV)
• Watermelon (9% DV)
• Papaya (8% DV)
• Apricot (4% DV)
• Guava (2% DV)
• Passion fruit (1% DV)

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