When eyes become dry, irritated and inflamed, it is called xerosis-and it is one of the symptoms of vitamin A deficiency.
A small amount of vitamin A can often alleviates this symptom, sometimes combining it with zinc is helpful.
Be very careful--in fact, talk to a health professional first.
Too much vitamin A can be toxic.
Symptoms of toxicity include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dry skin, hair loss, headaches, appetite loss, sore lips, and flaky, itchy skin.
Bone fragility, thickening of long bones, deep bone pain, enlargement of the liver and spleen, blurred vision and skin rashes are symptoms of prolonged excessive intake.
It can also lead to reduced thyroid activity and excessive serum calcium.
Early findings of vitamin A toxicity are sparse, coarse hair, alopecia (hair loss) of the eyebrows, dry rough skin and cracked lips.
Severe headache, pseudotumor cerebri and generalized weakness are prominent later.
Cortical hyperostoses and arthralgia (joint pain) are common, especially in children.
Excessive ingestion of carotene does not cause hypervitaminosis A, but produces high carotene levels that can cause carotenosis, which is asymptomatic.
In carotenosis the skin (but not the sclera) become yellow, especially the palms and soles.
When patients have irritated, itchy eyes during hay fever season, vitamin A supplementation often works miraculously.
The RDA of Vitamin A, is between 1500-4000 IU for children and 4000-5000 IU for adults.
Research indicates that no more than 50,000 IU per day can be utilized by the body.
Vitamin A is found in high concentrations in animal tissues, especially liver and in fish liver oil.
Carotene, the precursor to vitamin A, it is water soluble and is found in carrots, spinach, beet greens and broccoli.