Vitamin "A" And Your Health

Although the investigations into and discoveries of vitamins began a bit earlier, Casimir Funk, a Polish biochemist, was the first to formulate the concept of vitamins in 1912. Funk then coined the word "vitamine", but it was later modified to "vitamin". How does vitamin A help your body? Great question. Vitamin A helps you to maintain healthy skin, strong eyesight, and strengthen your immune system—among other things. Vitamin A is known to possess antioxidant effects. Antioxidants are substances which prevent or slow down damage caused by "by-products" of "oxygen use" by body cells. They are known for cancer prevention and anti-aging. Where can you find vitamin A? Natural foods such as oranges and yellow fruits are known to contain substantial doses of vitamin A. Vitamin A has also been found to be largely available in vegetables such as Spinach, and fats. The vitamin in the vegetables is water soluble. What that means is that it is not stored in the body and must be replaced each day. Because vitamin A in vegetables comes in the form of beta carotene, it is an excellent way for your body to get it. Fat in the food you consume accounts for the majority of vitamin A needed for your survival. People on low fat or restricted diet may not be getting an adequate amount of vitamin A needed for their bodies to function properly. Persons suffering from vitamin A deficiency are also advised to consume a high level of protein as protein helps your body absorb vitamin A, combines with vitamin A to make it stronger, and help it move through your body. How much vitamin A should you really consume daily? To keep your body in optimum health, consuming around 5,000 international units (IU) of vitamin A daily is recommended. To put things into perspective, one medium orange gives you approximately 269 IU of vitamin A. A medium avocado contains approximately 1230 IU of vitamin A. A medium sized banana contains approximately 95 IU of vitamin A. A slice of cantaloupe contains approximately 2225 IU of vitamin A. A medium mango without peel contains approximately 8060 IU of vitamin A. A medium peach contains 524 IU of vitamin A. Your recommended daily intake of vitamin A may vary depending on age and health. So what happens if you don't get an adequate daily intake of vitamin A? The symptoms of vitamin A deficiency are worth avoiding. People with vitamin A deficiency may have skin problems, increased infections, night blindness and accelerated aging processes. As recovering from a vitamin A deficiency is difficult and complicated, you're advised to always stay up to date with your vitamins intake. On the other hand, some symptoms of an overdose of vitamin A are pain in the joints, abdomen and bones. However, these symptoms are rare and you should always strive to get an adequate vitamin intake. If your lifestyle is one that inhibits your ability to indulge in vitamin enriched or natural foods, you may want to consider vitamin supplements—the ones with no side effects.