At Lost About Vitamin A

[Bodhi]

Hello i read many contradictions about vitamin A so here are my questions:

The reason is i wanna choose the right form and dose of A is cause i want to improve my skin (very dry and ketarosis pilaris)

Some folks are raving about A in very high doses... above 100 000 IU that is takes away Acne...

Some use Now foods derived from fish liver which is cheap and has 25000 IU per capsule (dunno if its to much PUFA)

Some use Reninil Palmitate or Acetate....

I also read that to much A can block thyroid function...

So what is best form and stil a safe max of IU's not to block Thyroid but get max skin benefits??

Thanks!!

 

[Bodhi]

Forgot to add what form of vitamin A is derived from cod liver....

Thanks agian!

 

[tobieagle]

It's highly individual.

Eat a slice of liver and watch your skin.
If it is not improving over the next 2 days, your problem is probably not vitamin A.

 

[Bodhi]

It's highly individual.

Eat a slice of liver and watch your skin.
If it is not improving over the next 2 days, your problem is probably not vitamin A.

Ok thanks!

 

[marteagal]

You may reduce the amount of (supplemented) vitamin A by providing progesterone. Being a male, I am wondering if pregnenolone would also do the job:

A vitamin A deficiency severely inhibits steroid synthesis. (It is used so massively in steroid synthesis that a progesterone supplement can prevent the symptoms of vitamin A deficiency.) I suspect that vitamin A is necessary for the side-chain cleavage that converts cholesterol to pregnenolone.

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AND OTHER HORMONE-RELATED BRAIN SYNDROMES.

 

[BobbyDukes]

I'm confused about A.

I can eat all the liver I want, and never run into problems (eat the liver with gelatin and salt). If I eat the liver without salt and gelatin, my temps are still pretty stable.

I take one drop of retinil, and it gives me freezing cold feet (never have this problem otherwise, so for me it's very noticeable). The retinil also gives me crystal clear vision, which I really like. But for the reason of it giving me freezing cold feet, it's not something that I can use (as keeping my temps good is the goal).

What this tells me, without getting levels of A tested, who knows. I eat the liver slightly pink in the middle, so I wouldn't have thought the vitamin A is destroyed by cooking. Maybe it is, or maybe the liver (lambs) i eat just really isn't all that for levels of vitamin A. A mystery for me.

 

[ecstatichamster]

Ray has said that synthetic vitamin A gives him a migraine. There seems to be a huge difference between synthetic A from liver, and manufactured A.

I don't seem to have a problem with synthetic A, but a lot of people do.

 

[EIRE24]

I have terrible skin and nothing I have done that peat says or advice from this forum has helped it. Vitamin A from liver or supplementation does nothing, same for oysters and the zinc in them.

The only thing that keeps my skin clear is a potatoe diet or actually starving by not eating which points me towards the gut? I'm not sure what to do to be honest but I'm sick of having terrible skin, my next step is an antibiotic which I am scared to do.

 

[XPlus]

You could probably tell if you need some vitamin A by a quick smell test - it should have nice and calming smell.
I like the effect of natural Vitamin A (acetate) better than the synthetic palmitate but I find it highly prone to oxidisation in large doses.
This could be overcome by supplementing some Vit. E along with the vitamin A. Still, one would have to be very careful with higher doses since Vitamin A is mostly available in water-soluble forms while Vitamin A is an oil. It becomes difficult to absorb enough E to protect the large doses of A on skin.
I don't find oxidisation to be a problem with with higher doses of palmitate but it doesn't feel a good as acetate.
As for the fish-derived vitamin A, I find it disgusting.

Vitamin A can be valuable, short-term, when cortisol is through the roof and adrenals are out of whack.

 

[XPlus]

The only thing that keeps my skin clear is a potatoe diet or actually starving by not eating which points me towards the gut? I'm not sure what to do to be honest but I'm sick of having terrible skin, my next step is an antibiotic which I am scared to do.

It sounds gut-related. Unless you figure out what's fermenting in your gut or/and what's disturbing it, you'll probably won't be able to get clear skin.
As for existing acne, something benign like coconut oil or a 3% tetracycline cream on skin might help.
An antibiotic course is likely to help on the short-term but it wont offset an impaired digestion and a bad diet. Building physiological strength on the long term should is the better way to go.

 

[EIRE24]

It sounds gut-related. Unless you figure out what's fermenting in your gut or/and what's disturbing it, you'll probably won't be able to get clear skin.
As for existing acne, something benign like coconut oil or a 3% tetracycline cream on skin might help.
An antibiotic course is likely to help on the short-term but it wont offset an impaired digestion and a bad diet. Building physiological strength on the long term should is the better way to go.

Yes I suspect gut could be a problem. The strange thing is, I digest about anything just fine no pains or aches and stools are ok but I'm not sure if that does mean digestion is ok or not?

I was thinking of starting an antibiotic but I am a small bit scared that it may just destroy my gut further. Nothing else has worked apart from like I said fasting/starvation or a bland diet along with benzoyl peroxide on my skin and not using any soaps. I would love to get this sorted as it is my biggest health problem but I do not want to derail this thread as it is about vitamin A.

From my experience, no....vitamin A does not make one bit of difference for me.

 

[Xisca]

Eire24, I would not go for antibiotics if I was digesting fine!
If fasting helps you, I would go for juicing and raw food instead, so that it would replenish your micronutrients, and give you some energy also at the same time. This is not for me, but I know people who recovered with this type of diet!

By the way, liver gives me energy and if realgood fo rme, and I do not know if this comes from vitA.... we are so individual through our similitudes....