What are the dangers of taking excess of vitamin A, above the regular maintenance does?
Vitamin A is one of the few vitamins which, being fat-soluble, tend to concentrate in the body if taken in excess and can cause characteristic changes in the body. Infants and young children are most prone to damage from an excessive dose. However, most side effects go away on stopping the excessive doses. (A) Effects of excess vitamin A in infants and children Drowsiness, vomiting, and raised intra-cranial pressure (increase in pressure inside the skull). More gradual effects are failure to gain weight, loss of hair from the head, coarse hair texture and body pain. Early fusion of joints leading to stunted growth. (B) Effects of excess of vitamin A in adults Headaches, blurred or double vision, body pain with new bone formation at joints, sores at the angles of the mouth and loss of hair. (C) Effects of excess of vitamin A on the eye Loss of eyebrows or eyelashes, paralysis of eye muscles, double vision, bulging of the eyes, squint, haemorrhage of the retina. In view of these serious
