Vitamin A (Retinol)
What is it?
Vitamin A is the first vitamin discovered.
Vitamin A is fat-soluble, which means that it is soluble in fats. It is therefore interesting to always consume foods that are sources of vitamin A with lipids such as olive oil.
Vitamin A exists either in free form (retinol) or in the form of provitamin A, the best known being ß-carotene. The unit of measurement is the retinol equivalent (6 µg ß-carotene = 1 µg retinol).
What are the health benefits?
- Contributes to the maintenance of normal vision (retinal is a component of retinal pigments)
- Contributes to the proper functioning of the immune system
- Role in cell specialization and normal maintenance of mucous membranes and skin
- Contributes to the normal metabolism of iron
In which foods?
Retinol (animal sources)
- Cod liver oil (30000 µg/100g)
- Turkey liver (10800 µg/100g)
- Butter (675 µg/100g)
ß-carotene (vegetable sources)
- Carrot (3340 µg/100g)
- Pumpkin (3100 µg/100g)
- Apricot (2350 µg/100g)
Things to know!
A deficiency in vitamin A causes an increase in the sensitivity to infections, a disturbance in the production of mucus (dry skin, dry mucous membranes, dry eyes). It can also be associated with anemia due to a lack of hepatic iron mobilization. Be careful with the consumption of the liver of slaughtered animals, especially for pregnant women: these livers can contain very high concentrations of vitamin A which can be toxic.