Vitamin A Deficiency Symptoms

Vitamin A has many benefits to your continued day-to-day good health. It is vital to eye health, it keeps your reproductive system working properly, and is important in the development of strong bones and teeth. It’s also a powerful antioxidant that protects against cardiovascular disease and cancer by neutralizing free radicals in cells, and strengthens your immune system against colds, flu and infections. It also promotes healthy skin, hair and nails, and even slows the aging process. So as important as all this is to your overall health, it’s important to be able to recognize if you have symptoms of a Vitamin A deficiency. Here are a few tell-tale signs:

Vitamin A deficiency symptoms may cause a variety of health issues.  Increased dental and eye problems are common. Symptoms such as  dry eyes, difficulty seeing (particularly at night), rough, dry or scaly skin and  an increase in susceptibility to colds and viral infections like sinusitis, bladder or urinary tract infections, ear problems, rapid weight loss and loss of smell, taste or appetite can all be signs of a Vitamin A deficiency.  Needless to say, these are important health issues, and are not to be ignored.

If you notice the onset of these symptoms, consult your healthcare provider immediately. He or she will have a variety of ways to combat them with changes in diet and the addition of food supplements. There are plenty of foods you can eat that are high in Vitamin A.Both animal liver and fish liver oil will help boost your Vitamin A levels. Other Vitamin A rich food sources include eggs and milk. Foods containing beta-carotene contain Vitamin A, such as green and yellow vegetables like alfalfa, asparagus, beets, broccoli, chilli peppers, carrots, kale, mustard, spinach, pumpkin and yellow squash, sweet potatoes, and reddish-yellow fruits like apricots, cantaloupe, mangoes, papaya, peaches.

Take care of your diet, and you’ll take care of your overall health!