Vitamin A is one of the important vitamins that our body needs. It maintains healthy teeth, skeletal and soft tissues, and the skin. It has two principal forms in the food, the retinol and carotenes. The retinol form is its active form, which is also important for scotopic (under low light conditions) and color vision. The carotenes on the other hand can turn into Vitamin A especially the popular beta-carotene through conversion to retinal. Beta-carotene is an antioxidant, meaning it can protect cells from free radical damage.

Sources of this vitamin come from eggs, meat, milk, cheese, liver, kidney, cod, and halibut fish oil. Although they seem pretty plentiful of Vitamin A, they’re very high in saturated fat and cholesterol, except for skim milk. While the beta-carotene form can be extracted from carrots, pumpkin, potatoes, squashes, apricots, green leafy vegetables, and the famous goji berries from Asia. According to scientific research, the more intense the color of these foods, the higher is their beta-carotene content. And what’s so great about them is that they’re free of fat and cholesterol.

Deficiency in Vitamin A can lead to vision problems and susceptibility to infectious diseases. However, large doses of this vitamin can also be damaging. This chronic poisoning can occur in adults who take more than 25000 IU a day. So, this means that children and babies are rather more sensitive to it especially the retinol found in skin creams. One sign of increased beta-carotene level in the body is the change of skin color from yellow to orange. However, these circumstances can be reversed and cured.

The best way to get the right amount of Vitamin A for a person’s daily diet is through eating a balanced diet that contain variety of foods deemed to be healthy and guided by the food pyramid. Here’s a summary of recommended dose of Vitamin A according to age as stated by The Food and Nutrition Board at the Institute of Medicine:

Infants: 0 - 6 months: 400 micrograms per day (mcg/day); 7 - 12 months: 500 mcg/day

Children: 1 - 3 years: 300 mcg/day; 4 - 8 years: 400 mcg/day; 9 - 13 years: 600 mcg/day

Adolescents/adults: Males age 14 and older: 900 mcg/day; Females age 14 and older: 700 mcg/day

This recommended dosage still depends on many factors including medications, pregnancy, and illnesses. And it’s still best to ask the doctor’s advice when taking Vitamin A in these circumstances and regarding the health of children.

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You can get an adequate amount of your Vitamin A supply through goji berry products that are now available in the market. Check for their dietary nutrition labels to know more about the ample amount for your daily goji berry servings. Remember, it’s always best to choose to be healthy and safe.