Why We Don’t Put Vitamin A In The ThinkPharm Formula

Our story starts with liver. We are not saying you necessarily have to eat liver, but we are using it as an example as it is high in vitamin A.

Pregnant women are often told not to take vitamin A and avoid organ meats because of the risk of birth defects.

Studies have shown there is a 20x difference in the amount of teratogenic metabolite (substance that causes birth defects) formed when one consumes vitamin A from whole foods when compared to supplements (1). When consuming the same dose of vitamin A, the group eating calf liver had 20x lower concentrations of the teratogenic metabolite than the group taking the synthetic supplement.

You may be asking “How is this relevant to me? I’m not trying to have children”. The body isn’t so simplistic. The reason why the vitamin A causes these problems is because of a broader mechanism of harm.

This broad mechanism of harm is why a systematic review looking at 78 randomised trials with 296,707 participants using vitamin A supplements experienced a higher rate of death than those not taking the supplements. By how much? 24% increase with beta-carotene (a form of vitamin A derived from plants) and 3% increase with another form of vitamin A (2).

You see vitamin A has a pro-oxidant effect, meaning it can cause oxidative stress (3). This may explain part of its effect of causing bone loss when taken in excess (4); because oxidative stress has been shown to cause bone loss (5).

This pro-oxidant effect can result in stimulation of one’s antioxidant enzymes (6). Antioxidant enzymes that rely on mineral co-factors like glutathione peroxidase (selenium dependent), catalase (iron dependent) (7) and superoxide dismutase (zinc, copper and manganese dependent). By stimulating these enzymes, vitamin A can increase the usage of these minerals, thereby causing depletion over time.

This may explain the teratogenic (birth defect causing) effects of vitamin A. Zinc is used by the body to reduce the risk of birth defects (8). To do this, zinc goes from mother to baby (8). Vitamin A-induced zinc depletion may explain the increased risk of birth defects thought to be associated with taking vitamin A.

Liver contains a multitude of various substances that may help explain the difference in the effects observed between natural and synthetic.

Zinc: 1 – Has been shown to protect against vitamin A toxicity (in test tube studies) (9).

2 - Has been shown to be important for bone health (8). Vitamin A can worsen bone health.

3 - Has been shown to be important for the superoxide dismutase enzyme which is stimulated by vitamin A (10). As a result, it helps protect from the pro-oxidant effects of vitamin A.

Vitamin B12: - 1 - Has been shown to be very important for bone health by helping to produce taurine. B12 deficient rats have one third of the normal bone creating osteoblast cells, because of the resulting taurine deficiency (11). Vitamin A can worsen bone health (12).

2 - Taurine has been shown to protect against vitamin A toxicity in test tube studies (9). When added to the diets of rats it also reduced the toxic effects of vitamin A in rats, whilst simultaneously increasing the vitamin A levels in the blood serum (13). Taurine can bind to the vitamin A, to produce an inactive form for excretion (14). This means it increases both the safety and the efficacy of vitamin A (13).

3 – Vitamin B12 helps the body produce glutathione which protects the body from oxidative stress causes by vitamin A (15).

Copper: 1 – Has been shown to be important for the superoxide dismutase enzyme which is stimulated by vitamin A (10). As a result, it helps protect from the pro-oxidant effects of vitamin A.

2 – Copper has been shown to be able to dramatically reduce bone loss over time (16). Vitamin A can worsen bone health.

The iron (7) and selenium (17) found in liver are also important for the antioxidant enzymes, thereby potentially having a protective effect.

So, if we take the vitamin A with these other nutrients then we should be fine right? The truth is, more research is needed around what makes whole-food vitamin A safe. We don’t really know for certain all the subtleties around it.

The nutrients mentioned above are likely to help when given together with vitamin A but we don’t really know if there’s some mysterious component of calf liver that adds to the protective effect.

This is why it’s best to stick to food where possible in the case of vitamin A.

Don't worry if you're not a fan of eating liver, there are other vitamin A containing foods that you can use to meet your requirements.

----------------------------

Enjoyed this article? Click here to see our full list of articles and find out which other nutrients you should avoid supplementing.

For more information about how taking the ThinkPharm Formula would improve your life check out our other articles about how it was designed.

For a vitamin supplement that doesn’t profit from your misinformation and actually tries to improve your health, get your hands on the ThinkPharm Formula. Check out the formula on our product page.

----------------------------

Disclaimer: Food supplements are intended to correct nutritional deficiencies, maintain an adequate intake of certain nutrients, or to support specific physiological functions. The ThinkPharm Formula (or any other food supplement) is not a medicine and therefore cannot and does not claim to treat or prevent disease. All content on this website is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. None of the scientific studies quoted on this website qualify as proof or implication that ThinkPharm Health's supplements treat or prevent disease. Findings of scientific studies do not always represent reality. It is always difficult for scientific studies to reach accurate conclusions regarding nutrition and its relationship to diseases. Please consult your healthcare professional before making any significant changes to your diet and lifestyle. ThinkPharm Health is not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting on information from this website.