Vitamin A – Benefits and Side Effects

Vitamin A belongs to the family of fat-soluble vitamins. Vitamin A is most known for maintaining healthy vision, but it also plays an important role in bone growth, reproduction, cell division and cell differentiation. Vitamin A is responsible for maintaining the surface linings of your eyes, and your urinary, respiratory, and intestinal tracts. When these linings break down, you become more susceptible to bacterial infection.Of the many forms of Vitamin A, retinol is perhaps the most active, usable vitamin A, and is found in liver and eggs. Retinol can be converted to retinal and retinoic acid, which are other forms of vitamin A. Plants containing orange pigments have provitamin A carotenoids which the body’s liver can convert to retinol. Beta-carotene is a provitamin A carotenoid found in many foods.

Foods That Provide Vitamin A

Humans cannot produce Vitamin A in their own bodies so they must take it from external sources like food and vitamin supplements. (The liver stores Vitamin A and uses it when your Vitamin A intake is too low.) Whole eggs, whole milk, and liver are only few of the many food sources of Vitamin A. Since Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin, you cannot find it in fat-free milk.

Vitamin A Deficiency

Deficiency in Vitamin A is the leading cause of childhood blindness. You can tell if you have a deficiency in Vitamin A if you suffer from night blindness, extremely dry skin, dry hair, broken fingernails and a great susceptibility to infections. Vitamin A deficiency can also cause pneumonia, because without Vitamin A the cells that line the lungs lose their ability to remove disease-causing microorganism.

Liver, which is very rich in Vitamin A, was popular in ancient Egypt for being able to cure night blindness. A deficiency in Vitamin contributes to night blindness by making the eyes very dry, damaging the corner and the retina.