Vitamins · 5 min read ·

Vitamin A: from liver and from carrots

Vitamin A is needed for vision and for renewing cells. Animal foods supply it ready-made; plants give you beta-carotene, from which the body makes it. Here the form matters a lot.

A

In a nutshell

1What it does and how much you need

The retina needs vitamin A to capture light, and the whole body needs it for the growth and renewal of cells. A deficiency most often shows in the eyes — as drying and damage of the eye called xerophthalmia.1

EFSA recommendation 750 / 650 µg EFSA recommends 750 µg of vitamin A a day for men and 650 µg for women, 700 µg in pregnancy and 1,300 µg when breastfeeding. It is counted in retinol equivalents: 1 µg equals 1 µg of retinol, 6 µg of beta-carotene or 12 µg of other carotenoids the body can turn into vitamin A.1

2Where to find it

Data 4,948 µg Preformed vitamin A (retinol) is mainly in liver, butter, cheese and eggs. A hundred grams of beef liver has 4,948 µg — more than the upper level for a whole day.1,4

Beta-carotene is found in carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, spinach and other dark green leafy vegetables, red peppers, mangoes and melons.1 A hundred grams of raw carrots provide about 1,670 µg of retinol equivalents.4

3The form matters

EFSA recommendation 70–90% vs 5–65% Preformed vitamin A is 70–90% absorbed. Of beta-carotene, 5–65% is absorbed — depending on the food it is in, how the food is prepared, the rest of the diet and the person’s health.1
Moderate evidence — a review of studies 10–28 : 1 According to a review of human studies, it takes 10 to 28 µg of beta-carotene from vegetables for the body to get 1 µg of vitamin A. From simpler foods such as fortified rice or maize, 3.8–6.5 µg is enough.5
Weak evidence — a small study 3× In a study of 8 women, cooked and pureed carrots and spinach raised blood beta-carotene on average three times more than the same amount of raw vegetables. The study was small and the difference was at the edge of statistical significance.6
Weak evidence — a small study 0 → 28 g fat When 7 people ate a vegetable salad with a fat-free dressing, almost no carotenoids reached their blood. With a dressing containing 6 g of oil more was absorbed, and with 28 g the most.7

In the EU, supplements may contain vitamin A as retinol, retinyl acetate, retinyl palmitate or beta-carotene.8 Only preformed vitamin A — retinol and its esters — counts towards the upper level; beta-carotene does not.3

4When it harms

EFSA recommendation 3,000 µg The upper level for preformed vitamin A is 3,000 µg a day for all adults including pregnant women; EFSA based it on the risk of birth defects. According to EFSA, people in Europe will not exceed it if they eat liver and liver products no more than once a month. Women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy should not eat liver at all.2
Moderate evidence — a large observational study 4.8× In a study of 22,748 pregnant women, those who took more than 10,000 IU (3,000 µg) of preformed vitamin A a day from supplements had a baby with birth defects of the tissues that form the head and face 4.8 times more often than women taking at most 5,000 IU. The defects occurred mainly after high doses before the 7th week of pregnancy.9
Moderate evidence — observational studies +40% A summary of prospective studies with 283,930 people: those with the highest retinol intake had a 40% higher risk of hip fracture. Beta-carotene did not show a higher risk.10
Strong evidence +16% A summary of 9 randomised trials: beta-carotene supplements of 20–30 mg a day raised the incidence of lung cancer by 16% and of stomach cancer by 34%, in smokers and asbestos workers by 20% and 54%. They had no effect on cancer overall.11

EFSA therefore advises smokers not to take beta-carotene supplements and everyone else to use them only to cover their vitamin A needs. Beta-carotene from an ordinary diet does no harm, according to EFSA.2

What to take from this

Sources

Written on , based on studies available at that date. Newer research may change the conclusions.

  1. EFSA NDA Panel (2015). Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for vitamin A. EFSA Journal 13:4028. doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4028
  2. EFSA NDA Panel (2024). Scientific opinion on the tolerable upper intake level for preformed vitamin A and β-carotene. EFSA Journal 22:e8814. doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2024.8814
  3. EFSA (2025). Overview on Tolerable Upper Intake Levels as derived by the Scientific Committee on Food (SCF) and the EFSA Panel on Nutrition (version 11). efsa.europa.eu
  4. USDA ARS (2018). FoodData Central — SR Legacy, retinol or vitamin A in retinol equivalents (carotenes converted as by EFSA) per 100 g: beef liver, raw 4,948 µg retinol (FDC 169451), butter 671 µg retinol (FDC 173430), carrot 1,671 µg RE (FDC 170393), sweet potatoes, baked 1,922 µg RE (FDC 168483), spinach 938 µg RE (FDC 168462). fdc.nal.usda.gov
  5. Haskell M. J. (2012). The challenge to reach nutritional adequacy for vitamin A: β-carotene bioavailability and conversion — evidence in humans. Am J Clin Nutr 96:1193S–1203S. doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.112.034850
  6. Rock C. L. et al. (1998). Bioavailability of beta-carotene is lower in raw than in processed carrots and spinach in women. J Nutr 128:913–916. doi.org/10.1093/jn/128.5.913
  7. Brown M. J. et al. (2004). Carotenoid bioavailability is higher from salads ingested with full-fat than with fat-reduced salad dressings as measured with electrochemical detection. Am J Clin Nutr 80:396–403. doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/80.2.396
  8. Directive 2002/46/EC on food supplements, Annex II — forms of vitamins and minerals permitted in supplements (consolidated version 26 Nov 2025). eur-lex.europa.eu
  9. Rothman K. J. et al. (1995). Teratogenicity of high vitamin A intake. N Engl J Med 333:1369–1373. doi.org/10.1056/NEJM199511233332101
  10. Wu A. M. et al. (2014). The relationship between vitamin A and risk of fracture: meta-analysis of prospective studies. J Bone Miner Res 29:2032–2039. doi.org/10.1002/jbmr.2237
  11. Druesne-Pecollo N. et al. (2010). Beta-carotene supplementation and cancer risk: a systematic review and metaanalysis of randomized controlled trials. Int J Cancer 127:172–184. doi.org/10.1002/ijc.25008

This is general information and does not replace a doctor. If you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, take vitamin A supplements only after talking to a doctor.