You Must Take Vitamin A For Teeth And Gums because:
Number 1 – It Plays A Vital Role In Proper Bone Development
Number 2 – It Helps The Body Utilise Calcium Effectively
Number 3 – It Keeps the immune system strong and Prevents Inflammation
Those are the key benefits but there’s much more to Vitamin A and it’s relationship with Oral health.
You need to know what happens when we become deficient in this mineral, how to get the right amounts into our system and the best way to use it to get it fully absorbed into our bodies.
Remember!: Not every form of vitamin A works the same so make sure you read the full article to know the most effective form that will get absorbed fast.
Vitamin A, along with Other Vitamins, minerals and compounds, is an essential micro nutrient.
This means that our bodies cannot manufacture it therefore, it has to be included in our diet.
There Are 2 Different Forms Of Vitamin A
Depending on your diet and what you’re consuming on a daily basis, you might be getting low levels into your body because it’s having to work harder to convert it into the true version of Vitamin A.
Carotenoids – Plant Sources
The Carotenoids don’t come in the active form of vitamin A which means they have to be converted into retinol. The foods that contain this form of vitamin:
- Dark leafy green vegetables
- Carrots
- Mangoes
- Papayas
- Sweet potato
- Palm oil
Once in the body, they will be travel to your small intestine and when there is a requirement for Vitamin A, the beta-carotene will be cleaved or cut by a specific enzyme into two molecules of retinol.
If it’s not required then it will be stored in the liver.
An important note to make here is that the conversion rate of carotenoids into retinol is variable depending on your health and other genetic factors.
This is why we recommend you consume more of the active form of Vitamin A so it can be used straight away by the body rather than being wasted during the conversion process.
Retinol – Active Form – Animal Sources
If you want Vitamin A to benefit your Teeth and Gums Fast, we advise you to increase your intake of the active form of this vitamin and to do this you will want to eat the following foods:
- Liver
- Egg yolk
- Milk
- Cheese
- Butter
- Cod liver oil
Eat these foods and the vitamin A will be utilised straight away because it does not need to be converted. This means faster healing.
One important thing to note is that Vitamin A is fat soluble meaning it needs some fat alongside it, for it to be fully absorbed.
How Much Vitamin A Is Needed For Optimum Teeth And Gum Health?
The major health sites and institutions have recommended that adult males should be targeting between 750 – 1000 micro grams per day, whilst adult females need to be looking at 750 micro grams/day.
Again these are general guidelines and of course all of us are genetically different.
Some might get away with eating less while others will need to be taking more than the recommended doses to get the full benefits.
But Most of the dosages are in IU (international Units)?
10,000 IU per day is the recommended amount of vitamin a according to Dr Price. He claimed that anything lower than this would not provide enough impact for helping the teeth and gums.
Here is a List of foods that are equivalent to 10,000 IU per day:
- 20 ounces of cheddar cheese
- 25-30 egg yolks
- 20 cups of whole milk
- 3 1/2 cups of heavy cream
- 24 Tablespoons of butter
- 3 ounces of chicken liver
- 2 ounces of beef liver
- 10-45 teaspoons Nordic Naturals cod liver oil
- 3-5 teaspoons Rosita cod liver oil
- 1-3 teaspoons fermented cod liver oil
That’s a lot of things to consume to get the optimum levels but if you read the list carefully you can see that cod liver oil contains the highest amounts of vitamin A and only 1-3 teaspoons per day is required to get to that elusive 10000 IU.
Here is a general guideline of the approximate amounts for different age groups:
- Children age 3 months to 12 years: A dose of cod liver oil that provides about 5000 IU vitamin A daily, obtained from about 1 teaspoon of regular cod liver oil or ½ teaspoon of high-vitamin cod liver oil.
- Children over 12 years and adults: A maintenance dose of cod liver oil that provides about 10,000 IU vitamin A daily, obtained from 2 teaspoons of regular cod liver oil or 1 teaspoon of high-vitamin cod liver oil.
- Pregnant and nursing women: A dose of cod liver oil that provides about 20,000 IU vitamin A daily, obtained from 4 teaspoons regular cod liver oil or 2 teaspoons high-vitamin cod liver oil.
But Vitamin A Can Cause Toxicity!
Its true that there is a possibility of getting Vitamin A toxicity but that’s only if you are consuming large doses in the range of 50,000 – 100,000 IU per day.
But even at these dosages people can comfortably take them for 2-3 months at a time and be perfectly safe.
BE CAREFUL BECAUSE!…
You want the right type of Vitamin A entering your body especially if your using supplements.
Taking synthetic forms can cause toxicity at moderately high levels but did you know that taking fat soluble naturally occurring vitamin A from cod liver oil, liver, and butterfat is safe at up to ten times the doses of water-soluble, solidified and emulsified vitamin A found in some supplements that produce toxicity.
The main takeaway from this section is to get close to the recommended 10,000 IU of Vitamin A otherwise…
Vitamin A Deficiency Will Cause Problems
Yes, if there is not sufficient amounts of this mineral then you are at risk of:
Decreased Epithelial Tissue Development
The epithelial cells are what cover our skin and other vital organs of our body. They create a barrier between the outside and inside to make sure no dangerous substance enters the body.
This also includes the mouth area and the decreased amounts of these cells will leave opportunities for bacteria to enter and get into the gum area and cause problems.
Enamel hypoplasia
This is a condition where the enamel on the teeth is present in low levels and thinly covers the teeth. Usually the condition involves a part of the tooth having a pit in it.
If the condition is severe then you will see no enamel on the teeth, causing the dentin to be exposed.
Some hypoplasia and pits on the surface of the enamel correlate to a lack of vitamin A shown in this study.
Reduced Saliva Flow
Its also been noted that a lack of Vitamin A in your diet causes salivary gland atrophy which simply means that less saliva is being produced in the mouth.
This reduces the effectiveness of the oral cavity to fight off bacteria and also causes more acid to circulate around the mouth which causes enamel wear.
Best/Common Way To Know If I Have Vitamin A Deficiency
Although we have mentioned the problems you can encounter regarding your oral health, the most common and easy way to know if you have a deficiency is by examining your Eyes.
Poor Night Vision
Vitamin A plays a massive role in the visual cycle. This is a surefire way to know that you have a problem.
If your eyes struggle to adjust to night time meaning you find it hard to see properly or it takes a while for your eyes to adjust to the dark, you are lacking Vitamin A.
If you have dry eyes for most of the time or get headaches and blurred vision due to screen usage (computers, T.V) you may want to go to the doctor and take a blood test to check your Vitamin A levels.
Don’t Forget Vitamin D If You Want To Heal Cavities
Fat soluble Vitamin D is critical in helping to regulate calcium and phosphorous in the blood to stop tooth decay.
Edward Mellenby is the famous professor and physician who discovered Vitamin D and he said that the most important factor for producing well calcified bones and teeth was Vitamin D.
We have already established that high levels of Vitamin A are toxic but studies have shown that if you supplement it with vitamin D you will block the toxicity effect!
Another important reason why you need to supplement both these Vitamins together is because they produce the protein Osteocalcin which is responsible for deposition of calcium and phosphorous into the bones.
Best Way To Get Both Vitamins In 1 Sitting!
We always recommend you get most of your vitamin intake from whole foods but this isn’t practical for many of us who lead a busy lifestyle and don’t really have time to sit down and plan each meal in precise detail.
But fortunately there is a powerful supplement that contains both Vitamin A and D:
Fermented Cod Liver is Powerful!
1 teaspoon of this blue ice cod liver will give you between 3500 IU-10,000 IU vitamin D and around 7500 IU-25,000 IU of Vitamin A.
That’s more than enough to kick start you’re healing process. You might be wondering why there is such a wide range of the IU in the cod liver?
Its basically down to the fermentation process.
You see, each batch of fermented cod liver that Green Pastures produce has a slightly different level of vitamin concentration because it’s a natural process of fermentation.
Sometimes a batch may produce high levels of vitamins and other times it will be lower.
Fermentation is a natural enzymatic and microbial action that releases the oil from the livers. Green pastures Fermented Cod Liver Oil is a raw, unadulterated, whole food.
There are no additives of any kind and is routinely third-party tested for purity.
Dr Price Showed Its Effectiveness
Dr price carried out an experiment to show the potency of Cod liver oil and this was documented in the New Zealand Dental Journal.
He had 66 native girls, of which 33 who had the best teeth used as the control group. The other 33 group of girls were given 2 teaspoons of cod liver oil per day.
Apart from the addition of cod liver oil to one group, the diet of both the groups was the same.
After 6 months the results were examined and it showed that the group which was given cod liver oil was 41.75% more resistant to tooth cavities than the previously more immune control group not taking cod liver oil.
Interested In Buying It?
If your interested in this supplement please make sure you buy the bottle which says Green pastures blue ice as that is the real company.
If it’s your first time we also recommend you go for a flavoured version rather than the normal unflavoured because the taste might be too much for some people.
If you want you can Buy the Blue Ice Arctic Mint flavour from Amazon if your not too keen on the normal cod liver oil.
It has the same ingredients as the normal version but with a nice added flavour.
This is important because you want to be taking it every day to get the most benefit and you certainly won’t be doing that if you dislike the taste of it!.
Conclusion
Vitamin A is a powerful substance needed for a wide range of bodily functions but when it comes to oral health.
It’s especially important because it helps make bones strong and keeps the epithelial cells intact which is important in helping to keep the structure of teeth in place.
Incorporating at least 10,000 IU per day will give you the best chance of keeping your teeth in a healthy state and to do this you will have to adjust your diet to include foods that are already in the Retinol form so it can be used straight away.
These foods include: Liver, egg yolk, Raw Milk, butter and Cod liver oil.
For many people changing the diet is hard and takes time to make these adjustments but don’t worry because Cod Liver Oil is very potent and has a significant amount of Vitamin A to help you reach your daily RDA.
Best of all you only need to take 1-2 teaspoon per day which is easy for anyone.
Another benefit of Cod liver oil is that it also contains Vitamin D which is important because it will negate the effect of Vitamin A Toxicity.
Vitamin A Related F.A.Q
Q. What happens if you eat too much vitamin A?
A. Hypervitaminosis A is the term described as having a toxicity effect. Symptoms arise as a result of altered bone metabolism and altered metabolism of other fat-soluble vitamins.
Ingesting too much preformed vitamin a from animal sources such as fish or animal liver and supplements can be prevented by following the recommended daily allowance.
Q. Can vitamin A activate vitamin D?
A. Vitamin A is needed for vitamin D to bind to it’s receptors in our genes. But it doesn’t necessarily activate vitamin D.
Q. Which Food is high in Vitamin A?
A. Carrots contain 200% of the RDA of vitamin A, half a cup of lettuce contains 361 IU of vitamin A, whilst a sweet potato provide 438% of the RDA.
Cod liver is also high in vitamin A and D which makes it a supplement you must have in your cabinet.
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