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Vitamin A is the original anti-viral vitamin

gut health skincare vitamin a
Vitamin A is the original anti-viral vitamin

Vitamin A not only supports skin health, which is your first line of protection against infection, it supports the mucosal lining throughout your body and gut health, which is also where 70-80% of your immune cells live. It also helps regulate your adaptive and innate immune system. And it decreases RNA virus replication.

One way it boosts your immune system is that it supports natural kill3r cells (NKCs). Vitamin A levels correspond to the number of NKCs in your body and how well they work. With sufficient Vitamin A, NKCs can destroy targeted cells, including cancer cells, in three days.

Vitamin A may be helpful in preventing or treating many infectious conditions, including COVID-19.

Viruses themselves can reduce our ability to absorb and utilize Vitamin A, as well as cause us to excrete it in our urine.

When we're deficient in Vitamin A, we may experience generally a much poorer immune response to virus3s.

There are two kinds of Vitamin A, provitamin A and preformed Vitamin A, but only preformed Vitamin A will give us retinol, which is what we need. And this can only be found in animal foods.

*A few sources of preformed Vitamin A include:

✨Liver

✨Full-fat dairy

✨Fatty fish

*And a few Vitamin A-rich supplements include:

✨Cod liver oil, historically used for illness (I like Rositas, promo code INNATE provides 10% off)

✨Desiccated liver (I like Perfect Supplements (INNATE, 10% off) and Saturée (INNATE, 5% off).

Learn more on episode 7 of The Innate Wisdom Podcast with Jim Stephenson, Vitamin D researcher. And learn more about optimizing nutrient levels for pregnancy in my pregnancy prep eCourse, Conscious Conception, relaunching spring/summer. Sign up on the waitlist here to not miss any updates!

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Not medical advice.

References:

Ahmad, S.M. Haskell, M.J. Raqib, R. Stephensen, C.B. (2008). Markers of innate immune function are associated with vitamin a stores in men. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19091796/.

Arnarson, A. (2017). 20 Foods That Are High in Vitamin A. Retrieved from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods-high-in-vitamin-a.

Bicknell, F. Prescott, F. (1942). The Vitamins in Medicine. Milwaukee, WI: Lee Foundation for Nutritional Research.

Gaby, A. (2011). Nutritional Medicine: Concord, NH: Fritz Perlberg Publishing. 

Haas, E. M. Levin, B. (2006). Staying Healthy with Nutrition. New York, NY: Ten Speed Press.

Harrison, E.H. (2011). Mechanisms involved in the intestinal absorption of dietary vitamin A and provitamin A carotenoids. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3525326/.

Huang, Z. Liu, Y. Brand, D. Zheng, S.G. (2018). Role of Vitamin A in the Immune System. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6162863/.

Jimenez, C. Leets, I. Puche, R. Anzola, E. Montilla, R. Parra, C. Aguilera, A. García-Casal, M.N. (2010). A single dose of vitamin A improves haemoglobin concentration, retinol status and phagocytic function of neutrophils in preschool children. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20003622/.

Lee, H. Ko, G. (2016). Antiviral effect of vitamin A on norovirus infection via modulation of the gut microbiome. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4867650/.

Lee, H. Ko, G. (2017). New perspectives regarding the antiviral effect of vitamin A on norovirus using modulation of gut microbiota. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5730389/.

Leung, W.C. Hessel, S. Méplan, C. Flint, J. Oberhauser, V. Tourniaire, F. Hesketh, J.E. von Lintig, J.Lietz, G. (2009). Up to 45% of people have a gen3tic predisposition (BCM01) that makes it very difficult to convert beta carotene into Vitamin A. Retrieved from: https://faseb.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1096/fj.08-121962.

Midha, I.K. Kumar, N. Kumar, A. Madan, T. (2021). Mega doses of retinol: A possible immunomodulation in Covid‐19 illness in resource‐limited settings. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7883262/.

Novotny, J.A. Harrison, D.J. Pawlosky, R. Flanagan, V.P. Harrison, E.H. Kurilich, A.C. (2010). β-Carotene Conversion to Vitamin A Decreases As the Dietary Dose Increases in Humans. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2855261/.

Pike, J.W. Meyer, M.B. (2011). The Vitamin D Receptor: New Paradigms for the Regulation of Gene Expression by 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2879406/.

Ross, A.C. Stephenson, C.B. (1996). Vitamin A and retinoids in antiviral responses. Retrieved from: https://faseb.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1096/fasebj.10.9.8801180.

Schoenfeld, P. (2020). Vitamin A-mazing. Retrieved from: https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/vitamin-a-mazing/#gsc.tab=0.

Semba, R.D. (1999). Vitamin A and immunity to viral, bacterial and protozoan infections. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10604208/.

Stephenson, C.B. Lietz, G. (2021). Vitamin A in resistance to and recovery from infection: relevance to SARS-CoV2. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7884725/.

Tang, G. (2010). Bioconversion of dietary provitamin A carotenoids to vitamin A in humans. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2854912/.

Wiertsema, S.P. van Bergenhenegouwen, J. Garssen, J. Knippels. L.M.J. (2021). The Interplay between the Gut Microbiome and the Immune System in the Context of Infectious Diseases throughout Life and the Role of Nutrition in Optimizing Treatment Strategies. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33803407/.

Yang, Y. Yuan, Y. Tao, Y. Wang, W. (2011). Effects of vitamin A deficiency on mucosal immunity and response to intestinal infection in rats. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20363594/.

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