Learn how to treat Dry Eye with Vitamin A

Suffering from dry eye? Vitamin A helps protect the surface of the eye (cornea) and is essential for good vision. Vitamin A is a group of antioxidant compounds with a long list of benefits for vision, bone development and the growth and repair of body tissue. A deficiency in vitamin A has been shown to cause and exacerbate dry eye disease.

But before you start munching down on Vitamin A supplements, you need to know that vitamin A can be obtained from food in two different forms: it can be found pre-formed in animal sources – it is also called retinol or retinal; pro-vitamin A – also called beta carotene – is derived from plant sources.

Warning: Large quantities of pre-formed vitamin A (animal) can build up in the body and become toxic. It is not water-soluble and thus it is not properly converted to waste in our bodies; instead, it gets stored in body fat. Beta carotene supplements are water-soluble and the body has no problems eliminating it. These supplements; however, may not be recommended for smokers. Two studies have found that beta-carotene supplements may increase the risk of lung cancer on smokers.

Now that you know the difference, try these delicious foods for a good source of Vitamin A:

• Sweet potatoes
• Carrots
• Mangoes
• Cantaloupes
• Dried Apricots
• Milk
• Egg yolks
• Liver (Pâté)
• Spinach
• Mozzarella cheese
•  Paprika, Red pepper

Vitamin A in eye drops

A study done by the Division of Ophthalmology at Kansai Rosai Hospital in Hyogo, Japan treated 12 patients with topical Vitamin A eye drops to treat superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis patients for three months with outstanding results – 10 patients or 83% saw no recurrence. Other studies have found that preservative-free Vitamin A drops can help substantially in treating dry eye symptoms, some even better than more expensive prescription drops[1].

Vitamin A also have been shown effective for the treatment of the following eye diseases: superior limpic keratoconjunctivitis, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), retinitis pigmentosa (RP), loss of peripheral vision, Stargardt’s disease.