The article, "Vitamin A", is written by Susan Sullivan, who is the associate director of the
University of Maine. Vitamin A is a major nutrient associated with healthy skin and eyes,
growth, and immune system function. It is essential for reproduction and the growth of children.
Ms. Sullivan writes about the different forms, symptoms of deficiency, toxicity, and the history
of vitamin A. The article main purpose is to provide information on the importance of vitamin A
to your body if you follow the United States National Academy of Medicine's recommendation
of dietary allowance.
The article begins with the discussion of two types of vitamin A found in food called
preformed and provitamin. Preformed vitamin A can be located
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Next, Sullivan describes how the lack of this vitamin can result in a
vitamin deficiency disease. It may take one to two years to cause symptoms because the body
stores vitamin A in fat tissue. Some symptoms of Vitamin A deficiency are problems of the skin
and mucous membranes, poor growth in children, skeletal abnormalities, and weakening of the
immune system. The article further argues that the toxicity of consuming too much vitamin A
and how it can also be harmful, as the vitamin can build up in the body to toxic amounts. The
buildup of too much vitamin A may give skin a yellow or orange coloration in the palms and the
soles of the feet. Lastly, she briefly writes about the history of the studied of essential nutrients
as early as the early 1800's. In 1932, the Swiss chemist, Paul Karrer, discovered the chemical
structure of vitamin A.
The article by Ms. Sullivan possesses interesting information on Vitamin A in an easy-to-
read language. She uses bullet points to organize her topics of discussion and that made it easy
to follow her facts on the nutrient. The length of the article of 10 condense paragraphs is also
sufficient to the topic without overwhelming the readers with too much