Micronutrients are essential for immune function, energy production, learning and cognitive functions throughout childhood. Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is one of the four major nutritional deficiencies worldwide.

Due to insufficient vitamin A consumption or reduced availability of provitamin A, particularly carotenoids, VAD affects normal hematopoiesis (the formation of blood cellular components), iron metabolism and immunological functions. VAD is a major problem in developing countries. One study estimated that 44.4% of preschoolers in Africa are at risk of VAD. While in Ethiopia, 80,000 people die yearly due to VAD which affects 61% of preschool children.

This led to a team of researchers from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board to evaluate the anthropometry and blood biochemical status of children (776 subjects with 7-11 years of age) of 10 rural primary schools in five states in Malaysia. An anthropometric assessment considers issues such as stunting, thinness, being overweight, obesity, and being underweight. Plasma retinol, α-carotene, β-carotene and α-tocopherol (vitamin E) levels were measured in a blood biochemical study.

This is reportedly the first published paper in Malaysia to report malnutrition levels based on anthropometric and biochemical assessments in children from multiple “orang asli” (OA) (aka “indigenous or native people”) schools, as well as comparisons to children from non-orang asli (NOA) schools. The overall results show that malnutrition is common among primary school children in rural Malaysia (53.4%). Orang asli (OA) children especially under the age of 10 showed significantly higher levels of anemia, iron deficiency (ID), iron-deficiency anemia (IDA), as well as lower hemoglobin and ferritin concentrations, than NOA children. Lower levels of retinol, retinol-binding protein (RBP), α-carotene, hemoglobin and ferritin were observed among stunted and underweight children which may reflect the impact of VAD for a prolonged period on growth retardation.

Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) was more common among OA schoolchildren based on both retinol (27.8%) and RBP (51.1%) measurements. In addition to the socioeconomic level, poor nutrition or a lack of dietary intake/food availability may play a role in the occurrence of this condition.

“The World Health Organization has classified vitamin A deficiency as a public health problem, a leading cause of preventable childhood blindness, and increasing the risk of death from common childhood illnesses,” said Ariati Aris, scientific affairs specialist at PhytoGaia. “Many may think this is a problem in third world countries but based on this new study, VAD is a common issue among schoolchildren in rural areas of a developing country like Malaysia. Provitamin A carotenoids such as alpha-carotene and beta-carotene can help and are better than retinol due to the latter’s safety concerns. These carotenoids are converted into vitamin A as and when the body needs it, thereby making it a safer option. Based on a recent meta-analysis, mixed-carotene derived from palm fruits is highly efficacious in improving vitamin A status and preventing or alleviating VAD among populations at high risk of VAD4.”

“Vitamin A is essential for healthy vision, the immune system, reproduction and growth and development. However, high intakes of some forms of vitamin A can be toxic but not with natural provitamin A carotenoids such as CaroGaia,” said Bryan See, vice president of PhytoGaia. “As a matter of fact, provitamin A carotenoids are safe and have unique important biological activities that are not shared by regular retinol or vitamin A. Due to these reasons, natural provitamin A carotenoids are your best source of vitamin A for dietary supplements or fortified food.”

PhytoGaia has set up special programs in this challenging time to support companies and brands interested in incorporating CaroGaia as natural carotenes and provitamin A into their multivitamins and nutritional products, he continued. “We hope this will support the communities at large and reaches the people who need these products fortified with provitamin A carotenoids.”