Do you also feel like you have a little trouble seeing at night? Or does your skin sometimes feel dry and flaky? If you have a small child, does he or she get sick all the time? These are probably things that can happen when your body doesn't have enough Vitamin A. So today, let's talk about what Vitamin A Deficiency is, what causes it, and how to protect ourselves.
What is vitamin A? Why do we need it?
Simply put, vitamin A is a nutrient that performs a very important function in our body. It's like a little worker in our body. Vitamin A is essential for maintaining good eyesight, healthy skin, keeping our immune system strong and protecting us from diseases, and for cell development and metabolism. Our body cannot make vitamin A on its own. Therefore, we need to get it from the foods we eat.
Imagine, for our eyes to see at night, they need to make special pigments inside the eye. Vitamin A helps make these pigments. If there is not enough vitamin A, the production of these pigments decreases. This is when a condition called night blindness occurs. That is, vision is reduced in low-light environments at night.
Similarly, vitamin A is also needed to maintain moisture in our eyes and protect the transparent front part of the eye, the cornea, from drying out. If the cornea dries out, it can become damaged, possibly even leading to blindness.
Not only this, vitamin A also helps keep the lining of our skin, lungs, intestines, and urinary tract healthy. It is also very important in fighting germs and protecting us from diseases.
There are two types of vitamin A, right?
Yes, there are mainly two types of vitamin A.
1. Preformed Vitamin A (Retinol): This can be absorbed directly into our bodies as vitamin A. It is often found in animal foods. For example, beef, chicken, fish, especially liver, and eggs. It is also added to some dairy products and cereals.
2. Provitamin A Carotenoids: These are found in plant foods. These carotenoids are what give vegetables and fruits their yellow, orange, and red colors. When we eat them, our bodies convert them into vitamin A. The most famous of these is beta-carotene . These are found in abundance in foods like carrots, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes.
What problems can occur if you don't have enough vitamin A?
If the body does not get enough vitamin A, various complications can occur. Let's see what they are:
- Eye problems: As we have already discussed, vitamin A is very important for eyesight. It can lead to night blindness, dry eyes (xerophthalmia), the formation of foamy spots on the white of the eye (Bitot spots), corneal ulcers, and ultimately blindness.
- Skin problems: The skin may become dry, flaky, and itchy.
- Infertility: Vitamin A is also necessary for the healthy functioning of the reproductive system. If it is not enough, problems with conceiving children may occur.
- Growth retardation in children: Growth and development in young children may be delayed.
- Respiratory tract infections: Chest and throat infections (respiratory tract infections) can occur frequently due to decreased immunity.
Important: Vitamin A deficiency in young children is a leading cause of blindness worldwide. Millions of children go blind every year because of this. Therefore, it is very important to take care of this.
What are the symptoms of vitamin A deficiency? How do you recognize it?
One of the first signs of vitamin A deficiency is night blindness (nyctalopia) . This means that it becomes difficult to see in the dark and in dimly lit areas. However, vision is normal in bright light.
As the condition worsens, the eyes may become dry and tear production may stop. This is called `xerophthalmia`. Bitot spots may appear on the white of the eye. In more severe cases, corneal ulcers may develop, or the cornea may become dry and cloudy (keratomalacia) and blindness may result.
In addition, as mentioned earlier, symptoms such as dry skin, frequent illness, and stunted growth in children may also occur.
Why do we lack vitamin A? What are the reasons?
The main reason is that we do not get enough vitamin A from the food we eat. In developing countries, poor people do not get enough vitamin A-rich foods. That is the biggest problem. This situation can be seen in some parts of Sri Lanka as well.
In addition, there are other reasons:
- Liver disorders: Our body stores most of its vitamin A in the liver. So, if there is any disease in the liver, this storage can be disrupted.
- Fat malabsorption: Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin. Therefore, if you have a disease that prevents the intestines from absorbing fat properly, your absorption of vitamin A will also be reduced. Examples:
- If you have chronic diarrhea
- Celiac disease
- Cystic fibrosis
- Some diseases of the pancreas
- Bile duct blockage
- Zinc or iron deficiency
- Some weight loss surgeries (Small bowel bypass or bariatric surgery)
- Alcohol use disorder
- If you have had surgery on your intestines or pancreas.
How do you know for sure if you have this? (Diagnosis)
If a doctor suspects something is wrong based on your symptoms, he or she will examine you. This will usually involve a blood test.
- Serum retinol test: This can measure the amount of vitamin A in the blood. However, since our bodies store a lot of vitamin A, blood levels of vitamin A decrease only when the deficiency is severe.
- Eye exam: If you have symptoms like night blindness, your doctor may also do a special eye test, such as electroretinography , which looks at how the light-sensitive cells (photoreceptors) in the retina are working.
Sometimes, a deficiency can be confirmed by seeing if symptoms improve after giving some vitamin A supplements.
How to treat vitamin A deficiency?
If a doctor diagnoses this condition, he or she may give you high doses of Vitamin A supplements for a few days. Then, gradually reduce the dose and continue taking it until your vision and skin condition improve.
These vitamin A pills can cure night blindness and reduce dry eyes and restore moisture. However, if vision is lost due to scarring caused by corneal ulcers, it is difficult to cure. That is why it is important to recognize this early and get treatment.
Warning: It is not good to give large doses of vitamin A to infants at once, as it can be toxic to them. However, children can be given vitamin A tablets in the correct dosage as per medical advice. The dosage is determined by a pediatrician.
Also, the doctor will help you plan a balanced diet that includes foods rich in vitamin A.
If your blood vitamin A levels are above a certain level (e.g., 30 mcg/dL), there is little benefit in taking supplements. In that case, it is best to eat foods rich in vitamin A. Because, even if you get too much vitamin A, it can be toxic.
How can we protect ourselves from vitamin A deficiency? (Prevention)
The best way to avoid this is to eat a well-balanced diet that includes foods rich in vitamin A. What are these foods that contain vitamin A?
- Green vegetables: spinach, kale, collard greens, broccoli, etc.
- Orange and yellow vegetables: carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, squash.
- Orange and yellow fruits: oranges, mangoes, papayas, cantaloupe.
- Milk and dairy products.
- Liver, beef, chicken.
- Some types of fish like salmon.
- Eggs.
- Vitamin A fortified cereals, rice, potatoes, bread, soybeans.
Just think, it's not for nothing that our mothers force us to eat carrots and greens from a young age. It's because they provide us with such valuable nutrients.
If necessary, you can also take a vitamin A supplement on medical advice.
What can you expect if you have a vitamin A deficiency?
If you increase your vitamin A intake, some of the effects of deficiency will start to reverse. Things like night blindness and dry eyes will improve. However, as mentioned earlier, the scarring caused by corneal injuries cannot be repaired.
Therefore, it is very important to eat enough foods containing vitamin A. If necessary, take a supplement containing vitamin A. Because not getting enough vitamin A can have serious, long-term effects, such as vision loss.
Finally, things to remember (Take-Home Message)
Vitamin A is a very important nutrient for our eyesight, skin, immunity, and growth. If you don't get enough of it, it can cause serious problems, from night blindness to blindness.
- Take care of your diet. Include foods rich in vitamin A in your daily diet, such as carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, green vegetables, fruits, liver, eggs, and milk.
- If you have symptoms such as changes in night vision or dry skin, seek medical advice. It could be due to a vitamin A deficiency.
- Be especially mindful of the vitamin A needs of pregnant mothers, nursing mothers, and young children.
- Do not take vitamin A pills unnecessarily without medical advice. Too much of anything is not good enough.
Your health is in your hands. With a healthy diet, you can protect yourself from these types of deficiencies.
` Vitamin A, Vitamin A deficiency, nutrition, eyesight, skin diseases, immunity, child health
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