Vitamin A has had a bad repution for a while and many people think that they have to be away from it. The most danger from vitamin A is if you eat the liver of a bear or liver everyday, which can contain a lot of the vitamin A and other nutrients. The following are facts about vitamin A:
Some studies have shown that children with deficiency of vitamin A are more at risk of mortality from measles. Children given vitamin A, showed reduce mortality and less complication from measles. Children who received 60mg of retinoic acid had significantly higher IgG responses to measles virus and higher circulating lymphocytes counts during follow up compared with children receiveing placebo.
Diarrhoeal diseases
Diarrhoeal disease caused by rotavirus, Escherichia coli, Shigella, Vibrio cholerae Salmonella and Entamoeba histolytica have been shown to reduce mortality and morbidity from these pathogens by fortification or supplementation of the vitamin A in Tamil Nadu, Nepal, Ghana and Brazil.
Vitamin A in pregnancy and lactation might has shown to be very important for the immune system and for night blindness. Vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene has shown to reduce all cause of mortality and morbidity in the developing countries and western world. Beta-carotene needs zinc to be converted into the retinoic acid.
Mucosal immunity
The way the mucosal function can be impaired by the deficiency of vitamin A is through the loss of cilia in the respiratory tract (cilia are hair like processes, they are also found in the uterine tract to move the ova towards the uterus). Loss of microvilli in the gastrointestinal tract (this are fingerlike projection that makes your nutrients being absorbed from the intestine). Loss of mucin and goblet cells in the respiratory, gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts (mucin and globlet cells, make mucous which get rid of any bacteria and waste from the mucosal lining). Squamous metaplasia with abnornla keratinisation in the respiratory and genitourinary tracts. Alteration in antigen-specific secretory immunoglobulin A (IgA) concentrations (this are the antibodies that fights bacteria and other pathogens in the mucosal surface). Impairment of mucosal-associated immune-cell function and lastly decreased integrity of the gut (allowing more pathogens and bigger molecule to enter the blood leading to possible allergies and intolerances reaction).
Well the above was a bit scientific but it is nice sometime to have some breakdown of what the actual nutrient do in your body and how wanderful our body is to make all these things from just a little nutrient and which we get from our healthy food!!!!!
http://www.nutritionhealht.net/
Vitamin A is one vitamin that has a bed reputation for being bad in pregnancy. But a vast majority of pregnant women and children in the third country and some in the western world are deficient of this vitamin. This leads to many problems in the foetus and pregnancy as well as reducing the activity and function of the immune system.
Vitamin A has an important role in the mucosal surfaces of the intestinal tract (which is the first line of defence for the body) and the lining of the lungs. Deficiency of the vitamin A leads to night-blindness, xerophtalmia, retardation of growth, impaired reproductive capacity and anaemia.
There are two ways that you can get the vitamin A, directly from food via animal sources in the retinol form. These foods are egg yolk, liver, butter, cheese, whole milk and cod-liver oil. The pro-vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene is found in vegetables foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, yellow and orange foods such as carrots, sweet potatoes, mangoes, papaya, oranges and tangerines and many others..
How vitamin A works is in the form of retinoic acid and attaches to retinoid receptors in order to make its effect on the target cell and specific target gene. Retinoic acid influences gene activation through specific receptors that are part of the thyroid and steroid receptors. Vitamin A receptors is very closely involved in the gene expression (DNA expression, where each individual body takes their instruction) and therefore involved in regulating genes.
Vitamin A is essential for the mucosal surfaces of the gastrointestinal, respiratory and genitourinary tracts and it is also essential for the lymphoid system of the mucosal tract Deficiency of vitamin A in childhood is one of the most causes of mortality in the developing world. Also vitamin A it seems to be recognized as essential for many aspects of the immune function, including components of both non-specific immunity such as phagocytosis (eating debris or bad bacteria), maintenance of mucosal surfaces and specific immunity, such as generation of antibody responses (IgA in mucosal surfaces).
Deficiency in vitamin A can lead to:
• Abnormal expression of keratins in the respiratory tract, genitourinary tract and ocular surface
• Loss of Cilia from respiratory epithelium
• Loss of microvilli from small intestine
• Decrease in goblet cells and mucin production in mucosal epithelia
• Impaired neutrophil function
• Impaired natural killer (NK) cell function and decreased number of NK cells (NK are included in the immunity as anti-viral and anti-tumour immunity)
• Neutrophils are impaired (involved in phagocytosis adhesion and generation of active oxidant molecules (retinoic acid plays a role in the normal maturation of neutrophil)
• Impaired aspects of haematopoiesis (CD4 + lymphocytes count is lower)
• Shift towards T-helper type 1-like immune responses (vitamin A balances the T-helper type 1 and T helper type 2 like response.
Measle
Some studies have shown that children with deficiency of vitamin A are more at risk of mortality from measles. Children given vitamin A, showed reduce mortality and less complication from measles. Children who received 60mg of retinoic acid had significantly higher IgG responses to measles virus and higher circulating lymphocytes counts during follow up compared with children receiveing placebo.
Diarrhoeal diseases
Diarrhoeal disease caused by rotavirus, Escherichia coli, Shigella, Vibrio cholerae Salmonella and Entamoeba histolytica have been shown to reduce mortality and morbidity from these pathogens by fortification or supplementation of the vitamin A in Tamil Nadu, Nepal, Ghana and Brazil.
Vitamin A in pregnancy and lactation might has shown to be very important for the immune system and for night blindness. Vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene has shown to reduce all cause of mortality and morbidity in the developing countries and western world. Beta-carotene needs zinc to be converted into the retinoic acid.
Mucosal immunity
The way the mucosal function can be impaired by the deficiency of vitamin A is through the loss of cilia in the respiratory tract (cilia are hair like processes, they are also found in the uterine tract to move the ova towards the uterus). Loss of microvilli in the gastrointestinal tract (this are fingerlike projection that makes your nutrients being absorbed from the intestine). Loss of mucin and goblet cells in the respiratory, gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts (mucin and globlet cells, make mucous which get rid of any bacteria and waste from the mucosal lining). Squamous metaplasia with abnornla keratinisation in the respiratory and genitourinary tracts. Alteration in antigen-specific secretory immunoglobulin A (IgA) concentrations (this are the antibodies that fights bacteria and other pathogens in the mucosal surface). Impairment of mucosal-associated immune-cell function and lastly decreased integrity of the gut (allowing more pathogens and bigger molecule to enter the blood leading to possible allergies and intolerances reaction).
Well the above was a bit scientific but it is nice sometime to have some breakdown of what the actual nutrient do in your body and how wanderful our body is to make all these things from just a little nutrient and which we get from our healthy food!!!!!
http://www.nutritionhealht.net/
