Vitamin A is one of the vitamins for hair growth that is a kind of anti-oxidants, which protect the body from cancer and boost immunity against various diseases. Vitamin A, other than for hair growth, it also contributes for healthy eyes, teeth, gums and mucous membranes. It is also involved in fat metabolism and the production of white blood cells.

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that is present in two forms: retinol from animal sources, and beta carotene from plant sources. Beta carotene is also known as pro-vitamin because it is not in the original form of vitamin A, but it should be decomposed by the body to act as vitamin A.How Vitamin A helps in our hair growth?

Our hair roots requires enough moist to support the hair follicles and for that Vitamin work very well in this situation. Vitamin A can provide enough moist to our hair roots in order to be healthy. Insufficient amount of moist can lead to dryness of the roots and hair loss.

As important as the hair roots is the hair nerve fibers. Our nerve system is very important as it sends out a signal to multiple part of the body to perform it’s duty. Vitamin A, in this case, works to protect the nerves on our scalps so that it can continually produce and protect hair growth.

Where Can We Normally Find Vitamin A?

For source of retinol or preformed vitamin A, we normally can find it from animals based food such as margarine, eggs, milk, beef liver and fortified breakfast cereals. We can also find Vitamin A in vegetables such as kale, spinach, collard greens, apricots, squash, sweet potatoes.

Is there a limit to how much we can consume Vitamin A?

Yes, excessive vitamin A or other vitamin for hair growth intake can cause bad effects to the body and our hair. Among the effects of excessive intake of vitamin A (more than 10,000 IU per day):

• headache;
• hair loss;
• dry skin;
• fatigue;
• bone problem;
• liver damage;
• defects in the fetus in pregnant women.

The Food and Nutrition Board at the Institute of Medicine recommends the following:

Infants

• 0 – 6 months: 400 micrograms per day (mcg/day)
• 7 – 12 months: 500 mcg/day

Children

• 1 – 3 years: 300 mcg/day;
• 4 – 8 years: 400 mcg/day;
• 9 – 13 years: 600 mcg/day.

Adolescents and Adults

• males age 14 and older: 900 mcg/day;
• females age 14 and older: 700 mcg/day.

This is just a general recommendations, please consult your doctor for a proper indication on how much should you consume. It can differ from different person to another.

Thus the best source of vitamin A are from beta carotene because not all pro-vitamin are broken down into vitamin A which ultimately avoid poisoning in the body.

In conclusion, Vitamin A contributes to a healthy hair growth just like other vitamins for hair growth such as vitamin E, C, D, Biotin and many more. Please consult with you doctor on how much Vitamin A can you consume as more often it can lead to toxicity if taken more than it should.