The vitamin A is one of the most important micronutrients for the organism . Among the most relevant aspects of vitamin A, it stands out that it is key to prevent vision problems and helps maintain healthy skin , as well as being beneficial for bones and teeth.
There are two types of vitamin A : preformed vitamin A (present in beef, poultry, fish and dairy products) and provitamin A (fruits , vegetables and products of plant origin). The most common is provitamin A present in food and that can cause an excess of vitamin A in the body.
The amount of vitamin A that exceeds adequate levels depends on age and sex based on the following table:
| Stage of life | Recommended amount |
|---|---|
| From birth to 6 months of age | |
| Babies from 7 to 12 months of age | |
| Children 4-8 years of age | |
| Adolescent girls of 14 to 18 year old | |
| Adult men | |
| Adult women | |
| Pregnant adolescents | |
| Pregnant women | |
| Lactating adolescents | one,200 mcg RAE |
| Breastfeeding women | one,300 mcg RAE |
Risks of excess vitamin A
Despite the virtues that vitamin A has in its correct standards, it is true that if we exceed the appropriate levels we can present a series of health problems. This phenomenon is called hypervitaminosis A and two types are distinguished:
- Acute: This is caused by an excess of vitamin A in a relatively short period of time.
- Chronic: It is when an excess of this micronutrient is taken during a long or prolonged period of time.
In the case of having hypervitaminosis A we can present a series of symptoms in the body, of lesser or greater severity. Among them, the following stand out:
- Osteoporosis.
- Dizziness.
- Irritability.
- Blurred vision in children
- Decreased appetite.
- Drowsiness.
- Fatigue.
- Headache.
- Enlargement of the liver and spleen.
Bone pain and numbness.
In fact, having too much preformed vitamin A can cause dizziness, nausea, coma, headaches and even death in the worst cases. For its part, in pregnant women it can also cause birth defects in the baby.
This is the limit for Vitamin A in the blood
These are the limits in which we must begin to be careful with the levels of vitamin A in the blood:
| Ages | Upper limit |
|---|---|
| From birth to 12 months of age | |
| Children 4-8 years of age | |
| one,700 mcg | |
| two,800 mcg | |
| Adults older than 19 year old | 3,000 mcg |
The foods that more vitamin A have are carrots, lettuce, spinach, cabbages, sweet potatoes, pumpkin or melon, among many others in which we must keep our eye to avoid eating them in excess or the opposite, since most foods with vitamin A are healthy.
