Vitamin A is an essential nutrient for good health. Your body needs this vitamin to develop and maintain healthy teeth, skin, skeletal and soft tissues, and mucous membranes. Vitamin A creates the pigments in the retina of the eye and is needed for good vision. It may also be critical to breastfeeding and reproduction. It’s recommended that males ages 14 and older take in 900 micrograms of vitamin A daily and that females age 14 and older get 700 micrograms a day.
You can obtain vitamin A by eating meat, kidneys, liver, codfish, halibut, fish oil, eggs, cheese, cream, while milk, and some fortified foods. However, most of these foods are high in saturated fat and cholesterol. Your body can also produce vitamin A when you eat carotenoids, which are dark-colored dyes found in plant foods. One of the most common carotenoids is beta-carotene, which is found in apricots, broccoli, cantaloupe, carrots, pink grapefruit, pumpkin, spinach, sweet potatoes, winter squash, and most dark green, leafy vegetables. These sources of beta-crarotene do not have fat or cholesterol and are healthier options for ensuring that you take in adequate amounts of vitamin A.
The best way to get your daily requirement of vitamin A is to eat a balanced diet. If you are vitamin A deficient, you’re more susceptible to infectious diseases and vision problems. But if you consume too much vitamin A, you can also become sick.
Vitamin A poisoning occurs when an adult takes several hundred thousand international units of the vitamins. Large doses of vitamin A taken during pregnancy can cause birth defects, and babies and children can become sick after taking smaller doses of vitamin A or products that contain it, such as retinol. Eating too many foods that contain beta-carotene, such as carrots, can temporarily turn your skin yellow or orange.
Additional Facts
• Women who are pregnant or brestfeeding should check with their doctors about taking vitamin A.
• Children need different daily amounts of vitamin A based on their ages.
• Retinoids are derivatives of vitamin A and are used to treat skin disorders such as acne.
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Showing posts with label vitamin A. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vitamin A. Show all posts
Friday, June 18, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Beta-carotene
Used for antioxidant effects in the prevention of cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
Beta-carotene is a member of the carotene family, the most widespread group of naturally occurring pigments in nature. Carotenes are a highly colored (red, orange, and yellow) group of fat-soluble antioxidants. Some carotenes, such as beta-carotene, can also be converted in the body to vitamin A (that is why it is categorized as a vitamin). Over six hundred carotenoids have been identified, but only between thirty and fifty are believed to have vitamin A activity. Beta-carotene has long been considered the most important carotene because it can easily be converted into vitamin A. however, although it has excellent antioxidant activity, several other carotenes (e.g., lycopene and lutein) have been shown to have greater antioxidant activity. Therefore, beta-carotene’s claim to be the most important carotene may no longer be valid.
The conversion of beta-carotene to vitamin A is dependent on several factors, including protein status, thyroid hormones, zinc, and vitamin C. The rate of conversion diminishes as beta-carotene intake increases and when serum vitamin A levels are adequate. Therefore, beta-carotene does not lead to vitamin A toxicity.
In general, the carotenes are present in highest concentrations in highly colored vegetables and fruit. Beta-carotene is the predominant carotene in most green leaves; in general, the greater the intensity of the green color, the greater the concentrations of beta-carotene. Orange-colored fruits and vegetables – carrots, apricots, mangoes, yams, squash, and so on – are also good food sources. The red and purple vegetables and fruits – such as tomatoes, red cabbage, berries, and plums – contain a large portion of other types of carotenes as well as another group of pigments known as flavonoids.
Carotenes are used as antioxidants in the prevention of cancer, and cardiovascular disease, as immune – enhancing agents, and in the treatment of leukoplakia and photosensitivity.
Beta-carotene is a member of the carotene family, the most widespread group of naturally occurring pigments in nature. Carotenes are a highly colored (red, orange, and yellow) group of fat-soluble antioxidants. Some carotenes, such as beta-carotene, can also be converted in the body to vitamin A (that is why it is categorized as a vitamin). Over six hundred carotenoids have been identified, but only between thirty and fifty are believed to have vitamin A activity. Beta-carotene has long been considered the most important carotene because it can easily be converted into vitamin A. however, although it has excellent antioxidant activity, several other carotenes (e.g., lycopene and lutein) have been shown to have greater antioxidant activity. Therefore, beta-carotene’s claim to be the most important carotene may no longer be valid.
The conversion of beta-carotene to vitamin A is dependent on several factors, including protein status, thyroid hormones, zinc, and vitamin C. The rate of conversion diminishes as beta-carotene intake increases and when serum vitamin A levels are adequate. Therefore, beta-carotene does not lead to vitamin A toxicity.
In general, the carotenes are present in highest concentrations in highly colored vegetables and fruit. Beta-carotene is the predominant carotene in most green leaves; in general, the greater the intensity of the green color, the greater the concentrations of beta-carotene. Orange-colored fruits and vegetables – carrots, apricots, mangoes, yams, squash, and so on – are also good food sources. The red and purple vegetables and fruits – such as tomatoes, red cabbage, berries, and plums – contain a large portion of other types of carotenes as well as another group of pigments known as flavonoids.
Carotenes are used as antioxidants in the prevention of cancer, and cardiovascular disease, as immune – enhancing agents, and in the treatment of leukoplakia and photosensitivity.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Meet Your Daily Beta
When ingested, the fat-soluble antioxidant beta-carotene is converted into vitamin A, which bolsters your ability to build healthy cells and tissues. Foods rich in beta-carotene include carrots, dark leafy greens, sweet potatoes, and mangos.
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