Vitamin A
PEOPLE MAY ASK WHAT ARE VITAMINS
Vitamins are important part of your diet. They are group of substances that are consumed in small amounts that help support your overall wellbeing. Vitamin A specifically is necessary for maintaining healthy eyes for good vision, healthy skin, and helps you fight off infection.
An estimated 44 percent of American are lacking adequate intake of vitamin A which protects us against cancer and heart diseases, prevents night blindness and other eye problems, helps the skin repair itself, and helps in the formation of bones and teeth. Vitamin A (retinol) is important ant for the immune system, protecting us against colds, the flu, and infections of the kidney, bladder, lungs, mucous membranes.
Beta-carotene is converted in the body to vitamin A. The recommended daily intake (RD) for most adults 2,300 to 3,000 IU (international unit) daily. Lasting women need only 1,000 to IU to 2,000 IU daily.
The chart below gives some food sources for vitamin A and beta- carotene.
VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY
Lack of vitamin A in your body can cause dry hair and skin, dry eye, poor growth, frequent colds, skin disorders, sinusitis, insomnia, fatigue, and respiratory infections.
WANT TO LIVE TO BE 100?
Blood level of antioxidants generally decreases with age. However, Italian researchers discovered that centenarians (people one hundred years of age or older) needed significantly higher blood levels of vitamin A and vitamin E than their younger counterparts The researchers concluded that these two vitamins seem to be very important in guaranteeing longevity.
CAUTION
Be careful not to go overboard when taking vitamin A because excessive amount of vitamin A may lead to liver damage. Dosage greater than 10,000 IU a day of vitamin A were reported in the New England journal of medicine to have probably been responsible for one out of fifty-seven birth defect in the united states.
