Is Extra Vitamin A Good for My Eyes?

Thus, the goal is to limit Vitamin A intake if you have Stargardt’s disease. 

1) Beef Liver. 3 ounces: 14,363 IU (almost 3x the DV)

  • 2) Carrots. 1 cup raw sliced: 21,384(over 100% DV)
  • 3) Sweet potato. 1 whole: 18,443 IU (over 100% DV)
  • 4) Kale. 1 cup, chopped: 6693 IU (over 100% DV)
  • 5) Spinach. 1 cup raw: 2813 IU (56% DV)
  • 7) Broccoli. 1 cup raw: 567 IU (11% DV)
  • 8) Butter. …
  • 9) Eggs.

Vitamin A is usually very good for the eyes, unless you have Stargardt’s disease, which is genetic disease that can lead to retinal malfunction and loss of vision:

Mutations in gene ABCA4 causes:
a. the malfunction of the ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABCA4) protein of the visual phototransduction cycle,
b. improper shuttling of vitamin A throughout the retina, and accelerated formation of toxic vitamin A dimers (also known as bisretinoids), and associated degradation byproducts (ABCA4) 

Vitamin A dimers and other byproducts are widely accepted as the cause of STGD1. As such, slowing the formation of vitamin A dimers might lead to a treatment for Stargardt. When vitamin A dimers and byproducts damage the retinal cells, fluorescent granules called lipofuscin in the retinal pigmented epithelium of the retina appear, as a reflecting such damage.

Mutations of ELOVL4 is associated with Type 4 Stargardt’s disease (STGD4) which causes a butterfly pattern of dystrophy due to a mutation in a gene that encodes a membrane bound protein that is involved in the elongation of very long chain fatty acids (ELOVL4)[1]
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