Vitamin A Is Toxic?

[InChristAlone]

This guy figured out his eczema was caused by vitamin A, so he went on an elimination diet:

My vitamin A elimination diet:

• Water
• White or Brown Rice ( not yellow or golden! )
• Egg Whites
• Beef ( steak, roast, no sauces, or spices other than salt and black pepper if wanted)
• Olive Oil ( 2 teaspoons per day )
• Black Coffee if wanted ( no milk, no cream, no whiteners )
• Vitamin C supplements ( recommended )
• Vitamin D supplements ( critical, depending upon your sunshine exposure )
• Cashews ( 5-10 per day, recommended)

NOTHING COOKED WITH BUTTER or COCONUT OIL. No sauces, no ketchup etc!

Ideas, Concepts, and Observations

He says he was cured of his fatigue and needs less sleep, his cognition greatly improved and he lost 20 lbs very quickly (I think I'd lose weight too on that boring diet!)
He also claims it could be the cause of autism, Alzheimers, Crohn's, and any autoimmune condition of the skin.

I find this really interesting as I had been eating liver for yrs before I developed a rash around my butt and then in my ears, and then on my eyelid. Not sure it's the vitamin A but I am intrigued. I can't get rid of the rash no matter what I've tried. I briefly got relief from the butt thing after doing UVB everyday on it in the summer. But nothing else has worked.

 

[raypeatclips]

That diet is incredibly clean (but boring) and he avoids many high profile irritants (gluten, dairy apart from egg whites, etc) I find it hard to work out how he has narrowed down his issues to simply vitamin A, when there are so many other factors involved. I'd be interested in knowing what his previous diet was and then comparing.

How come you think eating liver has caused your rash? Have you not made many dietary changes over the past few years?

 

[raypeatclips]

I wonder if vitamin A can exacerbate a vitamin D deficiency, and that is the real problem.

 

[InChristAlone]

That diet is incredibly clean (but boring) and he avoids many high profile irritants (gluten, dairy apart from egg whites, etc) I find it hard to work out how he has narrowed down his issues to simply vitamin A, when there are so many other factors involved. I'd be interested in knowing what his previous diet was and then comparing.

How come you think eating liver has caused your rash? Have you not made many dietary changes over the past few years?

I actually think it's the fungus that causes sebhorric dermatitis but I am waiting to buy the nystatin as it's really expensive. It's supposed to be an awesome treatment for it. Not sure on the liver, but before it started in my ears I had been eating liver at least once a week and also taking vitamin A sometimes. Back when I was doing WAPF and eating a lot of butter I had really bad dry chapped lips in the summer!

 

[raypeatclips]

I actually think it's the fungus that causes sebhorric dermatitis but I am waiting to buy the nystatin as it's really expensive. It's supposed to be an awesome treatment for it. Not sure on the liver, but before it started in my ears I had been eating liver at least once a week and also taking vitamin A sometimes. Back when I was doing WAPF and eating a lot of butter I had really bad dry chapped lips in the summer!

Any idea about your vitamin D levels over the last few years?

 

[InChristAlone]

Any idea about your vitamin D levels over the last few years?

Last test was a few yrs ago and it was 47. I do thrive on sunlight, but even after sunbathing a lot this past summer I still got it on my eyelid so maybe not related.

 

[tara]

I actually think it's the fungus that causes sebhorric dermatitis but I am waiting to buy the nystatin as it's really expensive.

If it's topical fungus I wonder if it might respond to slopping a bit of vinegar on it once or twice a day, at least as a short term measure till the wider system can be in enough balance to maintain itself? I've had different kinds of rashes over the years. Some resolved with vinegar, some with zinc, some were probably viral and sorted themselves in time, ...

 

[InChristAlone]

If it's topical fungus I wonder if it might respond to slopping a bit of vinegar on it once or twice a day, at least as a short term measure till the wider system can be in enough balance to maintain itself? I've had different kinds of rashes over the years. Some resolved with vinegar, some with zinc, some were probably viral and sorted themselves in time, ...

I tried the vinegar in my butt but it's such a hard to treat area it seemed any harsh treatments just made it come back with a vengeance it was really frustrating I basically just tried not to itch and it's better when I don't touch it. But in the ears I've tried vinegar, peroxide, niacinamide (which is actually acidic!) and tea tree oil in olive oil. On my eyelid I've mainly just tried to keep it moisturized and that keeps it at bay but nothing has ever been a cure. I have never had rashes like this ever in my life! It may have been from living in a moldy house. Zinc is an interesting one did you use diaper rash cream as that seems to be what has the zinc.

 

[raypeatclips]

Have you considered asking Ray his opinion?

 

[Herbie]

It would be interesting to see what is caloric intake was before he went on the diet and what it was while on the diet. I looks similar to the anti fungal diet, I think if people have sluggish liver that this diet helps the liver function and they feel better, I have done these diets years ago but its not long term solution.

I had dermatitis on my eyes and after 2 years of trying to figure it out. I was increasing metabolism and not supporting it with enough food. if I used progesterone it would get worse, liver made it worse, aspirin made it worse, looking back these would further increase metabolism.

 

[ddjd]

Vitamin C apparently stops the damage from vit A. there was a post in this forum about it a few weeks ago

 

[InChristAlone]

Have you considered asking Ray his opinion?

I probably should.

It would be interesting to see what is caloric intake was before he went on the diet and what it was while on the diet. I looks similar to the anti fungal diet, I think if people have sluggish liver that this diet helps the liver function and they feel better, I have done these diets years ago but its not long term solution.

I had dermatitis on my eyes and after 2 years of trying to figure it out. I was increasing metabolism and not supporting it with enough food. if I used progesterone it would get worse, liver made it worse, aspirin made it worse, looking back these would further increase metabolism.

Yes the diet may be doing more than depleting his vitamin A. And yeah I do have a history of undereating.

Vitamin C apparently stops the damage from vit A. there was a post in this forum about it a few weeks ago

Thats good news!

 

[mipp]

I find this very interesting because I've suspected vit A for some time too. My skin problems improve when I avoid foods that contain it. However I'm still not sure about it because there are other factors to consider. Some high A foods also happen to be high in histamines, which I'm almost certain make my seb derm worse. I wouldn't touch liver, it's a histamine bomb. Milk fat is high in vit A but it could be problematic for other reasons like hormones or allergenic proteins. I ate eggs daily for years and at some point they started to make me very tired and sleepy after eating. Could be vitamin A toxicity, could be something else. I'm still trying to figure this out.

 

[dfspcc20]

I wonder if vitamin A can exacerbate a vitamin D deficiency, and that is the real problem.

That's a Bingo!

 

[Dave Clark]

I find this very interesting because I've suspected vit A for some time too. My skin problems improve when I avoid foods that contain it. However I'm still not sure about it because there are other factors to consider. Some high A foods also happen to be high in histamines, which I'm almost certain make my seb derm worse. I wouldn't touch liver, it's a histamine bomb. Milk fat is high in vit A but it could be problematic for other reasons like hormones or allergenic proteins. I ate eggs daily for years and at some point they started to make me very tired and sleepy after eating. Could be vitamin A toxicity, could be something else. I'm still trying to figure this out.

Could be a blood sugar thing with the eggs, since eggs tend to raise insulin levels. I believe Ray had recommended eating fruit with eggs (and meat) for that reason. My wife can not eat eggs without having some fruit with them. She kept complaining after we ate our omelets that she was hunger a half an hour later. then I figured it out after reading about it on this forum. Also, food sensitivities (which almost everybody has subclinically) will cause symptoms that you normally wouldn't attribute to that cause. Bioenergetic testing is more accurate for that than blood testing, in my opinion.

 

[raypeatclips]

Something I have been wondering today, about the gentleman that changed his diet to include very low vitamin A, what vitamin A was he eating before? If he was eating lots of vegetables and fruits, was his vitamin A source mainly from beta-carotene, which in the eyes of a Peat fan, could be obvious why this is a bad thing. Saying simply "vitamin A is toxic" is a bit simplistic, was he eating lots of animal forms of vitamin A, such as liver, (I doubt it?) I am not sure how you would get to high amounts of vitamin A the "good" vitamin A, from a normal diet. 1 egg yolk has 239 IU, 1 cup of milk 114 IU etc.

Should a better hypothesis from the man have been "beta-carotene is toxic"? I have asked on his website what his previous diet was.

 

[InChristAlone]

Something I have been wondering today, about the gentleman that changed his diet to include very low vitamin A, what vitamin A was he eating before? If he was eating lots of vegetables and fruits, was his vitamin A source mainly from beta-carotene, which in the eyes of a Peat fan, could be obvious why this is a bad thing. Saying simply "vitamin A is toxic" is a bit simplistic, was he eating lots of animal forms of vitamin A, such as liver, (I doubt it?) I am not sure how you would get to high amounts of vitamin A the "good" vitamin A, from a normal diet. 1 egg yolk has 239 IU, 1 cup of milk 114 IU etc.

Should a better hypothesis from the man have been "beta-carotene is toxic"? I have asked on his website what his previous diet was.

I read his whole ebook and he did say he just had a normal diet, so you are right to question his theories. Beta-carotene seems to be able to build up in the tissues. Which is why it turns you orange! I don't think he was orange though. He is correct about accutane though. It's not a cure its actually destructive. And I wonder if vitamin A really is a cure for acne. @bohogirl I believe? tried vitamin A didn't seem to help her severe cystic acne.

 

[raypeatclips]

I read his whole ebook and he did say he just had a normal diet, so you are right to question his theories. Beta-carotene seems to be able to build up in the tissues. Which is why it turns you orange! I don't think he was orange though. He is correct about accutane though. It's not a cure its actually destructive. And I wonder if vitamin A really is a cure for acne. @bohogirl I believe? tried vitamin A didn't seem to help her severe cystic acne.

Maybe turning orange is just an extreme, end-stage reaction, and there can still be excess without being orange? Does his ebook mention anything about vitamin D tests? I am still convinced this could be simply a vitamin D issue exacerbated by vitamin A.

 

[InChristAlone]

Maybe turning orange is just an extreme, end-stage reaction, and there can still be excess without being orange? Does his ebook mention anything about vitamin D tests? I am still convinced this could be simply a vitamin D issue exacerbated by vitamin A.

He doesn't mention D but I believe he talks about light sensitivity being an issue with vitamin A. Which I know someone who dealt with that after overdoing the A.

Yeah I think there needs to be a balance with the fat soluble vitamins.

 

[Dotdash]

How much C and D did he take? Both are anti-inflammatory agents. A deficiency of a variety of B Vitamins is responsible for many skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis and other rashes. A deficiency in B12 allows beta-carotene to pool in the body but I think Dr Peat says this is not toxic - just unsightly. It (pooling) would interfere with thyroid activity though, so that could be part of the problem.