Vitamin A deficiency
Symptoms, at-risk groups, and clinical context for vitamin a deficiency. Sourced from NIH Office of Dietary Supplements and StatPearls.
Vitamin A deficiency is rare in the US but remains the world's leading preventable cause of childhood blindness in developing countries. WHO estimates 250,000-500,000 children become blind from vitamin A deficiency each year, with about half dying within 12 months. The first sign is usually night blindness; severe deficiency causes irreversible eye damage.
Common symptoms
- Night blindness (nyctalopia) — difficulty seeing in low light
- Dry eyes, reduced tear production (xerophthalmia)
- Bitot spots — foamy, white patches on the whites of the eyes
- Corneal drying, ulceration, or scarring (advanced)
- Permanent blindness (severe, untreated cases)
- Frequent infections, especially respiratory and diarrheal
- Dry, rough skin or follicular hyperkeratosis
- Slow growth in children
- Anemia
At-risk groups
- Children in low-income countries with limited dietary variety
- Pregnant women in developing countries (maternal night blindness affects 5-10% in some regions)
- Premature infants (limited liver stores at birth)
- People with fat malabsorption (cystic fibrosis, celiac disease, pancreatic insufficiency, biliary disease)
- People who've had bariatric surgery, especially biliopancreatic diversion
- People with chronic alcohol use disorder
- People with very limited diets or anorexia
When to see a doctor: Difficulty seeing at night or in dim light — especially after gradually worsening over weeks — should be evaluated promptly, particularly in pregnant women or anyone with fat malabsorption. Important: vitamin A is fat-soluble and accumulates in the body. Do NOT take high-dose vitamin A (>10,000 IU/day) without medical guidance — toxicity causes liver damage, and excess during pregnancy causes severe birth defects.
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Related deficiencies
Nutrients with overlapping symptoms — useful when investigating an unclear clinical picture.