Vitamin A - NZ Nutrition Foundation

Have you ever been told you need to ‘eat all your carrots so you can see in the dark’? There is some truth in this, as the orange pigment in carrots is turned into vitamin A by our bodies. Vitamin A is important in maintaining good eyesight, especially night vision. However, vitamin A is also important for growth and it helps us to fight infection.

How much vitamin A do we need?

	Age(years)	RDI*Vitamin A (µg/day) (as retinol equivalents)
Infants and toddlers	1-3	300
Children	4-8	400
	9-13	600
Adolescent boys	14-18	900
Adolescent girls	14-18	700
Men	19-70+	900
Women	19-70+	700
Pregnant women	14-18	700
	19-50	800
Breastfeeding women	14-50	1100

Which foods contain vitamin A?

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin found in two forms:

retinol (in animal foods) Retinol is found in the liver, milk, cheese and butter.
carotenoids (in plant sources). The most common of these is beta carotene, which gives the orange colour to carrots. Carotenoids are also found in dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli) and yellow-orange coloured fruits and vegetables (capsicum, kumara). Carotenoids are converted into Vitamin A in the body.

Vitamin A Content of Food (Retinol equivalents)

Food item	Vitamin A (µg) (as retinol equivalents)
1 slice of lamb liver	20600
1/2 cup cheddar cheese	233
1 teaspoon butter	133
1 cup trim milk	7
1 cup standard milk	83

Vitamin A Content of Food (Beta carotene equivalents)

Food item	Vitamin A (µg) as retinol equivalents (as b-carotene equivalents)
1 carrot	782 (4680)
1 cup spinach	540 (3230)
1 red capscium	259 (1550)
1 cup boiled broccoli	181 (1080)
1 red kumara	43 (255)

Retinol Toxicity

Too much vitamin A (retinol) can be toxic, although this is rare from food sources but should be considered when taking supplements that contain high levels of the retinol form of Vitamin A. High levels of vitamin A (retinol) during pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects. Women who are pregnant should

avoid eating more than 100g of liver a week (as this is high retinol)
avoid taking cod liver oil
avoid supplements containing vitamin A, including fish oils, unless advised by their doctor

Carotenemia

Carotenemia is a condition where your skin turns orange from eating too much beta-carotene. It is most noticeable on the skin of your palms and soles. Unlike jaundice, though, carotenemia does not cause yellowing of the whites of the eyes. Carotenemia is usually seen in young children, and despite its alarming appearance, it is relatively harmless and generally does not cause other health problems. To treat carotenemia, you simply need to stop eating so much beta-carotene.