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Healthy Diet Plans >>  Vitamin Diet >>  Vitamin Benefits >>  Dry skin is caused by Vitamin A deficiency

Dry skin is caused by Vitamin A deficiency:

What foods contain vitamin A?

Vitamin A is a nutrient that is required by the body in nominal quantities everyday. Even animals need vitamin A that they get from foods. The major form of vitamin A in foods of animals is called aster. The vitamin belongs to a class of molecules called retinoids.

Vitamin A is essential for the normal growth of skin and hair.

The vitamin is a very powerful antioxidant as it plays a very important role in building up the immune system in humans and animals. Deficiency of vitamin A in the human body may result in eye disorders, the most common of them being night blindness. The most common skin disorder caused due to deficiency of vitamin A is dry skin.

Sources of vitamin A

Vitamin A is found in animal products as well as plant products. The major sources of animal products for vitamin A include butter, cheese, milk and eggs. Then there is chicken, kidney, liver. Fish oils are also rich sources of vitamin A. The fish oils include those extracted from mackerel, herring and trout. 
A very rich source of vitamin A that is found in yellow and green vegetables is beta-carotene. The substance is automatically converted by our body into vitamin A. Vegetables that contain vitamin A include carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, collard greens. Vitamin A is also found in fruits such as apricots, papayas and mango.  
Chicken liver is a good source but it should not be eaten often. Pregnant women should avoid eating liver as it contains excessive amounts of vitamin A which could be harmful for the child.

How much vitamin A is required everyday?

Since the vitamin is fat soluble, your body does not require vitamin A everyday as it stores it for future use. The amount of vitamin required in men per day is 0.7 mg and the amount required by women is 0.6 mg.

Effects of Excessive amount of Vitamin A

Research by experts shows that excess amount of vitamin in the body like 1.5 mg per day may weaken the bones as a result of which they are more likely to fracture in old age. Women may be exposed to the risk of osteoporosis where the bone density decreases. Vitamin D balances the excessive amount of vitamin A in the body and hence people who don’t have vitamin D have chances of facing the consequences of excessive amounts of vitamin A.

Submitted on January 16, 2014