Contents:
- Medical Video: 6 Side Effects of Too Much Vitamin D
- How much vitamin A does the body need?
- The reason a person experiences excess vitamin A
- Various symptoms that arise due to excess vitamin A
- Symptoms of excess vitamin A acute:
- Symptoms of chronic excess vitamin A:
- What is the result of excess vitamin A?
- How to overcome excess vitamin A?
Medical Video: 6 Side Effects of Too Much Vitamin D
Our body needs vitamin intake to function optimally. Even so, adequate daily vitamin needs are the rules of the game. The amount of vitamin intake that must be fulfilled by each person can be different because it depends on gender, age, and activities. The most important thing is not to lack, especially excess. If excessive, this condition is called hypervitaminosis and makes the body show a variety of negative symptoms that are detrimental to your health. So, what are the signs and symptoms of excess vitamin A (hypervitaminosis A)? What is the result of excess vitamin A for the body?
How much vitamin A does the body need?
Based on the Nutrition Adequacy Rate (RDA) issued by the Indonesian Ministry of Health, the following dose of vitamin A is needed per day:
- 0 to 6 months: 375 mcg
- 7 months to 3 years: 400 mcg
- 4 to 6 years: 450 mcg
- 7 to 9 years: 500 mcg
- Men 10 to 80 years and above: 600 mcg
- Women 10 to 18 years: 600 mcg
- Women 19 to 80 years and above: 500 mcg
- Pregnant women 1st to 2nd trimester: plus 300 mcg of normal intake
- 3rd trimester pregnant women: plus 350 mcg of normal intake
- Nursing mothers for the first year: plus 350 mcg of normal intake
The reason a person experiences excess vitamin A
Vitamin A is included in the type of fat soluble vitamins. After being absorbed from the digestive tract, vitamin A will then be stored in fat cells and liver for a long time. If it needs to be used, the body will release it little by little so that the reserves don't run out immediately.
The more your daily vitamin A intake, the more reserves accumulate in the liver over time. Because the shelf life in the body is very long, a person is very at risk of excess vitamin A. Excess of this vitamin can cause toxic effects or poisons that affect the body.
Hipervitaminosis A is more common in people who supplement high doses of vitamin A on an ongoing basis, regardless of the original goal of maintaining a healthy body or preventing or treating certain diseases. This condition can also be caused by long-term use of acne medications that contain high doses of vitamin A such as isotretinoin (Sotret, Absorica).
Various symptoms that arise due to excess vitamin A
Symptoms that arise from excess vitamin A can vary, depending on the severity of the condition. Does hypervitaminosis occur briefly within a period of several hours or daily (acute) or occur continuously in the long term (chronic).
Symptoms of excess vitamin A acute:
- Unbearable drowsiness.
- Easy to get angry.
- Stomach ache.
- Nausea.
- Gag.
Acute poisoning can occur after you take vitamin A in high doses and a short time. Such cases are generally more common in children due to the consumption of unintentional vitamins. For example, children take their own vitamin supplements without their parents knowing they think they are candy.
Symptoms of chronic excess vitamin A:
- Blurry vision.
- Bones hurt.
- Appetite decreases.
- Dizzy.
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Sensitive to sunlight.
- Dry and rough skin.
- Itchy and flaking skin.
- Cracked skin in the corners of the mouth.
- Hair loss.
- Yellow skin.
Meanwhile, in infants and children the symptoms of chronic hypervitaminosis include:
- The skull bones softened.
- Double vision.
- The eyeballs stand out more.
- Bulge in the baby's skull.
- Weight is difficult to rise.
- Coma.
What is the result of excess vitamin A?
As a result of excess vitamin A in the body can cause various damage to internal organs, especially the liver and kidneys. In addition, you are also at risk for osteoporosis. Because the excess vitamin A makes it difficult for the body to absorb vitamin D needed for healthy and strong bones.
How to overcome excess vitamin A?
An effective way to overcome this condition is to stop taking high-dose vitamin A supplements. Generally after doing this method a person will recover completely within a few weeks.
However, if complications occur in the kidneys and / or liver, the doctor will treat them according to the severity and damage.
