Vitamin A for your complete health

Funny case happened when I was still a Pharmacy student:
I brought home a gel with high concentrations of Tretinoin for topical use - I've kept it in my mother's refrigerator and have completely forgotten about it.
I suddenly noticed that my mother had the most incredible skin - I kept asking her what she was doing, she replied that it was her "natural beauty." Sure she is a beautiful woman, but I thought that the quality of her skin was just a lot better than usual. Like one of those moments 'I-can-read-your-mind' type, I run to the refrigerator and saw the almost empty experiment. A-ha!!!

Vitamin A is an essential, fat-soluble vitamin related to the health of our vision, skin and bone growth. Its deficiency causes night blindness, corneal drying, among other symptoms.

Vitamin A exists not as a single compound, but in several forms - such as:
1. retinol - an alcohol, the major form of Vitamin A
2. retinal - an aldehyde
3. retinoic acid - an acid
4. pro-vitamin - precursors to the vitamin A, present in plant origin as some of the members of the carotenoid family of compounds.

Vitamin A - Facts
· vitamin A is a fat-soluble compound - for this reason, the body elimination of any excesses taken in through diet is harder than with water-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin C.
· Vitamin A's excess causes symptoms, such as nausea, jaundice, irritability, vomiting, blurry vision, headaches, weakness, and altered mentality.
· Vitamin A is a natural antioxidant, protecting cells against the action of the free radicals. Free radicals are reactive by-products of normal cell activity and in excess is related to illnesses as well as the aging process.

Pro-vitamin–A carotenoids - Facts
· Carotene is responsible for the orange colour of the carrots and many other fruits and vegetables.
· Carotene is fat-soluble – fats increase the absorption of the pro-vitamin by the body
· Pro-vitamins from carotenoids will be converted by the human body to retinol, if the body is deficient of Vitamin A.
· Unlike excess vitamin A, carotene in excess is non-toxic. Although its excess is not particularly dangerous, it can lead to a yellowing of the skin – specially the keratin of hands, feet, and eyes. It is most commonly associated with consumption of an abundance of carrots.

Natural Sources
The daily requirement for vitamin A is 900 micrograms for men and 700mcg for women.
Vitamin A is easily found in foods. Some are better sources of vitamin A than others - each portion (1.75-7 oz) contains at least 0.15 mg of Vitamin A or beta carotene: butter, liver, eggs, milk, beef, broccoli, carrot, sweet potatoes, collard greens, beet, pumpkin, spinach, apple, apricots, among other sources.

Vitamin A & Derivatives - Topical use
Vitamin A is an antioxidant that will protect the skin against free radicals and reverse signs of aging by promoting the skin collagen synthesis.
Topical tretinoin / retinoic acid - commonly used in acne treatment, hair loss treatment and to remove wrinkles. It is also used to reduce the appearance of stretch marks.

Side effects – topical use of Tretinoin/Retinoic acid
· Dryness of the affected skin may occur. More sensitive patients may also experience redness, scaling, itching, and burning.
· Professionals advice use in a gradual increase in the frequency and concentration, as this allows skin to adjust to its use.
· topical use increases the risk of sunburn - you should protect treated skin from exposure to the sun with a high SPF sunscreen.
· Patients who are using the tretinoin/retinoic acid formulas should avoid hair removal waxing - the use of tweezers is a better option for hair removal.
· The recommended time frame to wait for a waxing treatment varies – in general from 7 days to 3 months. Consult with your professional aesthetician and dermatologist to discuss the best hair removal options during or after topical use.

I am a super fan of the Vitamin A, especially for its antioxidant properties. I take supplements that contains vitamin A, C and E, associated with Iron and Zinc and try to follow a healthy diet.

Be good and be healthy!

Vanessa