Health Benefits of Vitamin A

Benefits Vitamin A Did your mother ever tell you to eat carrots because carrots will improve your vision? My mom did. Since I started wearing glasses when I was three, I ate a lot of carrots hoping against hope that my eyesight would get better. It took laser surgery to change that, but I still like carrots. Carrots contain vitamin A, which is thought to help promote good vision.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A, a fat soluble vitamin, helps with many important body functions in addition to helping with vision, including helping to keep your teeth in good condition, helping to keep your skin healthy, and helping with bone growth. In addition, vitamin A helps to control the immune system, helps with reproduction, and assists in cell division. Vitamin A might also serve as an antioxidant, at least under laboratory conditions, although studies have not completely confirmed that this vitamin actually works as an antioxidant for people.

Vitamin A is a very talented vitamin.

Vitamin A Sources

The vitamin A that is found in carrots and other vegetables is called provitamin A carotenoid. Other fruits and vegetables that contain provitamin A carotenoid include:

Raw spinach
Cantaloupe
Tomatoes
Sweet potatoes
Papayas
Apricots
Romaine lettuce

The vitamin A that is found in animal products is called preformed vitamin A and is found in foods such liver, eggs, and whole milk.

Like other vitamins, vitamin A is sometimes reduced or destroyed when foods are processed. Therefore, you will find vitamin A fortified products on the market, including low fat and skim milk and cereals.

Keep in mind that when you cook your food, you are, in effect, processing it. So, to maximize the amount of vitamin A and other vitamins that you consume, try to eat fruits and vegetables raw or steam them.

Vitamin A Deficiencies

What can happen to you if you do not get enough vitamin A? Vitamin A deficiencies can lead to:

Night blindness
Blindness
Difficulties in fighting infections

Most people in the United States are not at risk of developing vitamin A deficiencies unless they are on a severely restricted diet or drink alcohol excessively. However, people who have celiac disease, or sprue, Crohn’s disease, and certain pancreatic disorders may have trouble keeping enough vitamin A in their systems over time.

Vitamin A Overdose

It is possible to consume too much vitamin A since vitamin A is fat soluble and is stored in the body. Hypervitaminosis A, a condition where the body has stored too much vitamin A, can cause birth defects, central nervous system disorders, problems with the liver, and loss of bone density. Loss of bone density can ultimately lead to osteoporosis.

You can also get sick if you eat a lot of animal vitamin A in a short period of time. Symptoms include vomiting, dizziness, headache, and loss of muscle coordination.

Most people, however, overdose on vitamin A because they are taking supplements that their body cannot use, resulting in too much vitamin A in storage. Eating a balanced diet is the best way to ensure that you are getting adequate vitamin A.

And, don’t forget to eat your carrots!

~Laura Evan Staff Editor