Vitamin A may not be as popular on the charts of nutrients, but that does not pronounce it to be any less important than its other counterparts. It is the big daddy of the vitamins as it was the first fat-soluble vitamins to be discovered and has varied functions to maintain optimum health.

Know your Vitamin:

It is available majorly in two forms:

• The preformed Vitamin A (called Retinol) obtained from animal sources.
• The pro-vitamin A or beta-carotene (which is converted to vitamin A in the body) obtained from plant sources.

The major absorption of this Vitamin occurs in the small intestine and 50-80% of the storage is in the liver.

Vitamin A plays the following fundamental roles:

• Vitamin A is crucial in the synthesis of the visual pigments of the retina, supports healthy vision especially in dim light.
• It has vital roles in growth and development, maintains immune functions, development, and maintenance of epithelial cells (which form the lining of vital organs like the lungs, gastrointestinal and urinary tracts, reproductive organs).
• Beta-carotene has antioxidant properties to prevent cell damage thus improves lung and skin health and boosts the immune system.
• It also helps in preventing cancer and delays age-related vision problems.

Vitamin A deficiency results in pronounced changes like dry, rough, scaly, acne-prone, freckled skin. It also causes diminished vision at night (Night Blindness) and delayed growth in children; infertility, delayed wound healing, and increased susceptibility to infections.

Vitamin A friendly foods:

Vegetables (for beta-carotene): carrots (hence the name carotene), sweet potatoes, spinach, kale, collards, and winter squash.

Fruits: Cantaloupe, mango, papaya, and other red-orange coloured fruits.

Meats: Beef liver.

Seafood: Cod liver oil, mackerel, and salmon.

Poultry: Eggs.

Vitamin A toxicity occurs by supplementation in very high doses and manifests as skin changes, hair loss, headache, nausea, vomiting and can cause liver disease at a later stage.

So colour your plate with hues of the rainbow, there isn’t a more delicious way of loading up on this essential Vitamin, that not only promises inner strength but also a beautiful healthy you from the outside!

Click on the link below for CURO recipes:

Golden Glow Soup

Beet – The Blues Rainbow Juice