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Health & Supplements

5 Steps To Back Pain Relief
Acai Berry Juice Review
Acai Berry Studies
Acetyl L-Carnitine Information
Aloe Vera Juice, Gel & Health
Alpha Lipoic Acid Info
Amino Acid Supplment
Arginmax for Men Review
Arginmax for Women Review
Artichoke Leaf Extract
Ashwagandha Extract
Astragalus Root Herb
Back Pain Treatment
Back Pain Relief - Lower Back Pain
Black Cohosh Side Effects
Black Cohosh Benefit & SIde Effects
Blood Tests - Understanding 1
Blood Test - Understanding 2
Borage Oil GLA Benefits
Bromelain Quercetin Benefits
Calcium Supplement Benefit
Calcium Deficiency
Cause of Lower Back Pain
CoEnzyme Q10 - CoQ10 Info
Coral Calcium Supplement
Damiana Leaf & Herb Extract
Degenerative Disc Disease
Echinacea Golden Seal
Flax Seed Oil Health Benefits
Ginkgo Biloba Information
Ginseng Root Benefit
Glucosamine Chondroitin
Grape Seed Extract Benefits
Green Tea Extract Benefits
Guggul Extract - Guggulsterone
Herbalife Prelox Blue Review
Herniated Disc Treatment
Herniated Disc & Back Pain
Joint Pain & Joint Health - 1
Joint Pain & Joint Health - 2
Lactobacillus Acidophilus
Lifezyme Plus - Pain Relief
L-Arginine Benefit & Side Effects
L-Lysine Cold Sore & Benefits
L-Taurine Benefit & Side Effects
L-Tryptophan 5 HTP & Depression
Monavie Acai Juice Drink Review
Milk Thistle Benefit & Side Effects
Mineral Supplements and Health
Omega 3 Fish Oil Supplement
Piriformis Syndrome - Sciatic Pain
Pycnogenol Benefits & Side Effects
Saw Palmetto Herb Extract
Soy Protein Powder Benefits -1
Soy Protein Powder Benefits -2
Zrii Amalaki Drink Review


Vitamin Guides & Articles

Vitamin for Acne Treatment
Vitamin A & Beta Carotene
Vitamin A Deficiency & Carotene
Vitamin B Complex Benefit
Vitamin B1 Thimaine
Vitamin B1 Thiamine Deficiency
Vitamin B2 Riboflavin
Vitamin B2 Riboflavin Deficiency
Vitamin B3 Niacin
Vitamin B3 Niacin Deficiency
Vitamin B5 Pantothenic Acid & Acne
Vitamin B5 Pantothenic Acid Benefit
Vitamin B6 Pyridoxine
Vitamin B6 Pyridoxine Health Benefit
Vitamin B7 Biotin & Hair Loss
Vitamin B7 Biotin Deficiency
Vitamin B9 Folic Acid Pregnancy
Vitamin B9 Folic Acid Deficiency
Vitamin B12 Benefit & Side Effects
Vitamin B12 Deficiency & Symptoms
Vitamin C Ascorbic Acid
Vitamin C Health Benefits
Vitamin C Deficiency Symptoms
Vitamin C and Vitamine E
Vitamin D Benefits
VItamin D Deficiency Symptoms
Vitamin E Health Benefit
Vitamin E Deficiency Symptoms
Vitamin K Food & Benefit
Vitamin K Deficiency Symptoms
Vitamin K Supplements

Vitamin A - Beta Carotene & Retinol

Vitamin A & Vision

Vitamin A was the first vitamin to be discovered by human. In the ancient Greece, people realized that by eating the animal livers, their eyesight improves dramatically. What they didn't know was it's not the liver that give them ability to heal the eyesight problems, the secret element is Vitamin A which is sufficiently contained in the animal livers. Now days, we know Vitamin A can do much more than just improving our eyesight. For instance, we now know Vitamin A may help to prevent many skin diseases, even acne. Click here to read the article on Acne and Vitamins.

Vitamin A Supplement Facts

When Vitamin A was first discovered, it was called the "anti-infective element." It helped lab animals from getting eye infections. Vitamin A helps you put up strong front-line barriers to infection in order to fend off infections and illnesses. Without enough Vitamin A, germs can easily pass through your outer defense system, and into your body. Vitamin A also helps your immune system to fight against the germs once they get into your body. Therefore, it is a "double barrelled protection agent" of your body.

Vitamin A is also essential for healthy eyesight, as human have discovered centuries ago. Children and teens need plenty of Vitamin A to help them grow properly and build strong bones and teeth. Even after you’re fully grown, Vitamin A can help your body to constantly replace old, worn-out body cells with new ones and keep your bones and teeth strong as always. Because over-dosing on Vitamin A can be toxic, therefore, scientists today are studying Retinol and Carotene more closely rather than concentrating on pure Vitamin A supplements.

Vitamin A, Beta Carotene

It is known that excess amount of vitamin A could be very harmful to your health. Therefore, we do not recommend people directly intake vitamin A supplements. Instead, one should take some extra Carotene supplements since they may keep you away from the vitamin A deficiency and also help you to fight free radicals. Alpha Carotene and Beta Carotenes are the most effective supplements helping cancer patients to fight against the fatal disease.

Among the many different kinds of carotene supplements, we suggest the Carotenoid Complex supplement which contains Vitamin A as Beta-Carotene 25,000IU from Country Life. This supplement contains additional antioxidant carotenoids Lutein and Zeaxanthin, and natural alpha-carotene.

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Health Benefit of Vitamin A

There are many health benefits of Vitamin A, many of which we've already mentioned above. The following is a list of Vitamin A benefits:

  • Helps body external and internal defense systems to fight against harmful infections.
  • Helps you to form and maintain healthy looking skin, hair, and mucous membranes.
  • Helps you to prevent (or fight against) many eyesight related problems such as night blindness and formation of visual purple in the eye.
  • Helps in bone growth, teeth development.

Vitamin A Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA)

The latest recommendations for vitamin A are given in the Dietary Reference Intakes developed by the Institute of Medicine. Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) is the umbrella term for a group of reference values used for planning and assessing diets for healthy people.

One of those references values, the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), is the average daily dietary intake level sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of nearly all (97-98%) healthy individuals in each age and gender group.

RDA for vitamin A are listed as Retinol Activity Equivalents (RAE) to account for the different activities of retinol and provitamin A carotenoids. In the listings below, RDAs are also listed in International Units (IU) because food and some supplement labels list vitamin A content in International Units (1 RAE in micrograms (ug) = 3.3 IU).

Vitamin A RDA for Children and Youth:

Infants 0-6 months: 400 mcg/day
Infants 7-12 months: 500 mcg/day
Children 1-3 years: 300 mcg/day
Children 4-8 years: 400 mcg/day
Children 9-13 years: 600 mcg/day
Adolescents 14-18 years: 700 mcg/day (female) 900 mcg/day (male)

Vitamin A RDA for Adults:

Adults 19 years and older: 700 mcg/day (female) 900 mcg/day (male)
Pregnancy 18 years and younger: 750 mcg/day
Pregnancy 19-years and older: 770 mcg/day
Breastfeeding 18 years and younger: 1,200 mcg/day
Breastfeeding 19-years and older: 1,300 mcg/day

Results of two national surveys, the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III 1988-91) and the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII 1994) suggested that the dietary intake of some Americans does not meet recommended levels for vitamin A. These surveys highlight the importance of encouraging all Americans to include dietary sources of vitamin A in their daily diets.

There is no RDA for beta-carotene or other provitamin A carotenoids. The Institute of Medicine report suggests that consuming 3 to 6 mg of beta-carotene daily will maintain plasma beta-carotene blood levels in the range associated with a lower risk of chronic diseases. A diet that provides five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day and includes some dark green and leafy vegetables and deep yellow or orange fruits should provide recommended amounts of beta-carotene.

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