The What and How of Vitamin A and Its Effect on Your Body

Vitamin A can be found in a variety of general every-day foods such as bananas and oranges. You can also find it in lipids and vegetables such as spinach. When it is in vegetables, the vitamin A is present as beta carotene, a water soluble version of vitamin A. So don't let the italicized beta carotene by the vitamin A label on your food bother you. It IS vitamin A, just a different form.

Your body requires a daily portion of vitamin A to maintain nice skin and good eyesight. There is speculation that carrots give you just enough vitamin A to keep your eyes safe from nighttime blindness. That is incorrect. However, some carrots and liver in your daily diet doesn't necessarily hurt. Vitamin A also acts as an antioxidant by helping your body prevent the onset of cancer and reduce aging. In addition to all this, vitamin A also assists your immune system. A banana with glass of orange juice a day will keep the doctor away.

On a side note, you must eat fat to achieve proper vitamin A absorption. Even with supplement pills, you may not be absorbing enough vitamin A if you are on a low-fat diet. You can slightly curb this situation by consuming foods with high protein. The protein will combine with the vitamin A and assist in its absorption into your blood stream. Regardless though, you should still try to consume some fat everyday.

During a typical day, your vitamin A consumption should range around 5,000 IU. IU refers to the standardized international unit of measurement for vitamins. Based on your age, health AND smoking habits, you might require either more or less vitamin A. Your safest bet is to consume beta carotene. High quantities of beta carotene cannot hurt you.

By not consuming enough vitamin A, you may end up with a serious deficiency. This is certainly not a good thing and can result in dermatological problems, an increase in infections and even a stir of night blindness. Prolonged vitamin A deficiency can leave your body very susceptible to cancer and quickened aging. If you currently are deficient on vitamin A, begin taking it right away. Keep in mind that the effects may take awhile to notice. Your best bet is to begin a regiment of good vitamin A dosage. I recommend Centrum tablets, from A to Zinc.

As mentioned earlier, beta carotene is actually safer than pure vitamin A. By consuming too much raw vitamin A, you are actually placing yourself at risk for abdominal and skeletal pain. Although the effects are certainly not fatal, you should still make an effort to ensure proper vitamin A consumption on a daily basis.