Vitamin A and the eye: an old tale for modern times

Faustino, Jacqueline; Ribeiro‐Silva, Alfredo; Dalto, Rodrigo Faeda; Souza, Marcelo Martins de; Furtado, João M.; Rocha, Gabriel Mauriz de Moura; Alves, Mônica; Rocha, Eduardo Melani

doi:10.5935/0004-2749.20160018

Cited by 37 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…After ingestion they are converted into retinol (i.e., vitamin A), which serves as the precursor of the light sensor molecules in the retina. An adequate intake of provitamin A carotenoids can prevent degenerative eye damages, such as night blindness, xerophthalmia, Bitot's spot, corneal ulcerations and lesions [1]. In addition, carotenoids act as antioxidants and their intake has been linked with reduced risk of a number of chronic diseases.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carotenoids in Cereal Food Crops: Composition and Retention throughout Grain Storage and Food Processing

Trono

2019

Plants

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Carotenoids are C40 isoprenoids synthesized by plants, as well as some bacteria, fungi and algae, that have been reported to be responsible for a number of benefits conferred on human health. The inability of animals and humans to synthesize de novo these compounds is the reason why they must be introduced from dietary sources. In cereal grains, carotenoids are important phytochemicals responsible for the characteristic yellow colour of the endosperm, which confers nutritional and aesthetic quality to cereal-based products. Cereals are staple foods for a large portion of the world population, and the biofortification of cereal grains with carotenoids may represent a simple way to prevent many human diseases and disorders. Unfortunately, evidence exists that the storage and processing of cereal grains into food products may negatively impact their carotenoid content; so, this loss should be taken into consideration when analysing the potential health benefits of the cereal-based products. Focusing on the recent updates, this review summarizes the chemical composition of the carotenoids in the grains of staple cereals, including wheat, maize, rice and sorghum, the main factors that affect their carotenoid content during storage and processing and the most fruitful strategies used improve the grain carotenoid content and limit the carotenoid post-harvest losses.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carotenoids in Cereal Food Crops: Composition and Retention throughout Grain Storage and Food Processing

Trono

2019

Plants

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“…Its occurrence is classically associated with low intake of vitamin A from food sources [5,12], but it may also be associated with other factors such as socioeconomic status, and inadequate sanitation and the presence of infection [13,14,15]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serum Retinol Levels in Pregnant Adolescents and Their Relationship with Habitual Food Intake, Infection and Obstetric, Nutritional and Socioeconomic Variables

et al. 2016

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Globally, vitamin A deficiency (VAD) affects about 19.1 million pregnant women. Its occurrence is classically associated with inadequate food intake and may also be associated with socioeconomic factors and the presence of infection. The aim of this study was to determine the factors related to serum retinol levels among pregnant teenagers. The sample consisted of 89 pregnant adolescents, from whom socioeconomic, obstetric, anthropometric, and food consumption data were collected. Serum concentrations of retinol and the supposed presence of infection were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography and C-reactive protein quantification, respectively. The serum retinol concentrations were classified according to the criteria of the World Health Organization. We adopted a 5% significance level for all statistical tests. Serum retinol levels were significantly and positively associated with sanitation (p = 0.008) and pre-gestational nutritional status (p = 0.002), and negatively with the trimester (p = 0.001). The appropriate sanitation conditions and pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) were shown to have a protective effect against VAD. Conversely, serum retinol levels were reduced with trimester progression, favoring VAD occurrence.

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“…Various studies have suggested an association between eye dryness and vitamin A deficiency. 7,11,42 Vitamin A is an important component for the visual pigments and the integrity of the ocular surface, 41 and it is used in the treatment of peripheral vision loss, age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis. 43 Dry eye disease can result from vitamin A deficiency, with mild deficiency resulting in conjunctival changes and severe deficiency resulting in xerophthalmia.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>Effects of short-term oral vitamin A supplementation on the ocular tear film in patients with dry eye</p>

Alanazi¹,

El‐Hiti²,

Al-Baloud³

et al. 2019

OPTH

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Objective: To investigate the effects of short-term oral vitamin A supplementation on the ocular tear film in patients with dry eye. Methods: In total, 30 male patients with dry eye (age range, 18-38 years; mean age, 25.2±2.8 years) who did not wear contact lenses or exhibit any ocular (other than dry eye) or systemic diseases were included, along with 30 age-matched men (control group; mean age, 24.5±2.3 years) with healthy eyes. Subject exclusion was based on the findings of the McMonnies questionnaire (cutoff score for dry eye: 14.5) and slit-lamp biomicroscopy. All subjects received an oral vitamin A supplement at a daily dose of 1,500 mg for 3 consecutive days. The phenol red thread (PRT) test was performed along with assessments of tear ferning (TF), tear osmolarity, and the tear break-up time (TBUT) before and 24 hours after the third dose of the vitamin A supplement. A 10-minute interval was observed between different tests. Results: In the dry eye group, the TF grade (Wilcoxon test, P=0.01) exhibited a significant decrease, while the tear osmolarity value (t-test, P=0.01) exhibited a significant increase after vitamin A supplementation. The PRT test findings (P=0.17) and TBUT (P=0.49) showed no significant differences before and after vitamin A supplementation. In the control group, vitamin A supplementation showed no significant effects on TF (P=0.74), tear osmolarity (P=0.55), the TBUT (P=0.19), and the PRT test scores (P=0.48). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that short-term oral vitamin A supplementation improves the quality, but not quantity, of tears in patients with dry eye. Future studies should involve larger patient samples and longer periods of vitamin A supplementation.

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Vitamin A and the eye: an old tale for modern times

Cited by 37 publications

References 50 publications

Carotenoids in Cereal Food Crops: Composition and Retention throughout Grain Storage and Food Processing

Carotenoids in Cereal Food Crops: Composition and Retention throughout Grain Storage and Food Processing

Serum Retinol Levels in Pregnant Adolescents and Their Relationship with Habitual Food Intake, Infection and Obstetric, Nutritional and Socioeconomic Variables

<p>Effects of short-term oral vitamin A supplementation on the ocular tear film in patients with dry eye</p>

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