Vitamin A is related to vision, physical growth, bone development, reproduction and anti-infection. In addition, it also has the function of maintaining the health of skin and mucosa. Lack of vitamin A in children aged 0-3 will lead to growth and development disorders, and their physiological functions will also be affected.
When vitamin A is deficient, people's vision will decrease in dark light, which will cause night blindness. Corneal health may also be affected, such as eye discomfort, dry eye, photophobia and tears, corneal leukoplakia and even blindness.
Vitamin A deficiency can also cause dry skin, keratinization of hair follicles, rough skin and reduce the resistance of respiratory tract and digestive tract mucosa. Therefore, children with vitamin A deficiency are prone to bronchitis, pneumonia, diarrhea and colds. If the child often catches a cold and his skin is dry, consider whether to supplement vitamin A.
Vitamin A deficiency is mostly due to insufficient intake, but some diseases are also prone to vitamin A deficiency, such as long-term diarrhea, and some infectious or infectious diseases, such as measles, tuberculosis and pneumonia. Or adopting a high-protein diet when the disease occurs, but without corresponding supplement, it can also lead to vitamin A deficiency.
2. Food sources
The best way to prevent vitamin A deficiency is to increase the intake of related nutrients. The daily requirement of 0 ~ 1 year-old children is about 400 micrograms of retinol equivalent (1332 iu), and that of 0 ~ 3-year-old children is about 500 micrograms of retinol equivalent (1665 iu).
Foods rich in vitamin A are mainly animal foods, such as animal viscera, especially liver (pig liver, sheep liver, chicken liver, fish liver), egg yolk, dairy products and so on. Every 100g pig liver contains about 4,900 micrograms of retinol equivalent, human milk contains about 1 1 microgram, and milk contains about 24 micrograms of retinol equivalent. Dark green vegetables are rich in carotene, which can be converted into vitamin A in the body, so these vegetables are also a good source of vitamin A. Foods rich in carotene include carrots, leeks, parsley, spinach, rape, fennel and sweet potatoes. 100g of carotene is equivalent to more than 680 micrograms of retinol equivalent of vitamin A, and that of rape is equivalent to more than 620 micrograms of retinol equivalent. Some fruits are also rich in carotene, such as citrus, apricot, hawthorn and mango. Every100g of carotene in citrus is equivalent to150g of retinol as vitamin A, and mango is equivalent to150g of retinol equivalent. However, the absorption and utilization efficiency of β -carotene in plants is worse than that of vitamin A in animal foods, so children with poor nutritional status of vitamin A should pay attention to the supplement of animal-derived vitamin A. If it cannot be corrected after food supplement, or children are deficient due to other diseases, they should be carved out from the roots under the guidance of a doctor and supplemented with some vitamin A.
Scientific feeding
Half a year ago, as long as the mother's nutrition was good, breastfeeding could basically meet the child's demand for vitamin A. Therefore, the mother should pay attention to supplementing vitamin A, and the daily intake should reach 1.200 μ g retinol equivalent (3996 iu), which is half that of the average woman. For children who are artificially fed or mixed-fed, choose breastfeeding or infant formula, in which vitamin A can also meet the needs of children. Where there are no conditions, mothers can use vitamin A supplements after delivery under the guidance of doctors, which can safely and effectively improve the vitamin A levels of both mother and baby.
After 6 months, children began to add complementary food, and then children began to contact more and more foods other than milk. But before 1 year-old, children's main food should still be breast milk, and children can still get some vitamin A from breast milk, which is beneficial to the absorption and utilization of vitamin A in food. At the same time, you can add foods rich in vitamin A such as liver, egg yolk and carrots to your child, and the texture will gradually transition from muddy paste to minced meat and diced meat. After 1 year-old, in addition to letting children eat enough meat, milk and eggs, a sufficient number and variety of fruits and vegetables are also essential, especially dark vegetables, but only after proper cooking can β -carotene be fully transformed and absorbed by the human body. When making carrot porridge for children, many parents directly stew raw carrots in porridge, which not only destroys the nutrients that are not resistant to high temperature, but also is not conducive to the absorption and utilization of β -carotene because β -carotene is a fat-soluble substance, and its digestion and absorption rate is closely related to the amount of fat in the diet. If children are only given this porridge, they will eventually get quite limited vitamin A. Therefore, it is suggested that when cooking foods rich in β-carotene, appropriate amount of fat should be added, such as appropriate amount of cooking oil or cooking with pork, beef and mutton, but it should be noted that the digestive function of children under 3 years old is not mature and should not be too greasy. In addition, β -carotene mainly exists in plant cell walls and cannot be directly digested by human body. Only chopping and cooking can release β -carotene Therefore, carrots and other vegetables rich in beta-carotene should be cooked as much as possible before being eaten by children.
Finally, it should be noted that vitamin A is easy to accumulate in the body, and excessive intake will cause poisoning, causing anorexia, excessive excitement, sparse hair, stiff muscles and itchy skin. Therefore, the intake of vitamin A should be moderate, and large doses or long-term use of vitamin A supplements should follow the doctor's advice.