Foods high in Vitamin A
Fat-soluble vitamin for vision, immune function, and skin. Measured in retinol activity equivalents (RAE) so plant and animal sources are comparable.
About Vitamin A
Vitamin A is essential for vision (especially low-light vision), immune function, skin and mucous-membrane integrity, and cell differentiation. It comes in two forms: preformed retinol from animal foods, and provitamin A carotenoids, mainly beta-carotene, that the body converts.
Liver, eggs, dairy, and oily fish supply preformed retinol. Carotenoids cluster in orange-coloured vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes), dark leafy greens, and red peppers, fat in the meal improves absorption, and cooking generally increases carotenoid availability.
UK adult RI: 800 µg RAE/day. Deficiency is rare in well-fed populations but is a major cause of preventable blindness globally. Excess preformed retinol (mostly from supplements or large amounts of liver) during pregnancy is teratogenic, beta-carotene from food is safe at any intake.
Foods high in vitamin a, beef, lamb, liver, and more
Ranked by how much you get per calorie, so foods are not rewarded for simply being dry or concentrated. Values from USDA FoodData Central, McCance & Widdowson's CoFID, ANSES Ciqual, and other public nutrition databases. Amounts in UG.
Per calorie is the default here because it answers what to eat: ranked purely by amount, a list of the richest foods fills up with dried and concentrated things nobody eats a plateful of. Switch to per 100 grams above if concentration is what you are after.
- Beef, New Zealand, imported, variety meats and by-products, liver, raw 21,292.48µg per 100 grams
- Lamb, liver, raw 19,327.62µg per 100 grams
- Liver, calf, raw 18,076.92µg per 100 grams
- Lamb, liver, cooked 16,463.62µg per 100 grams
- Liver, pig, raw 15,398.23µg per 100 grams
- Liver, calf, fried in corn oil 14,327.84µg per 100 grams
- Beef, New Zealand, imported, variety meats and by-products liver, cooked, boiled 14,009.33µg per 100 grams
- Liver, lamb, raw 12,627.74µg per 100 grams
- Liver, pig, stewed 11,957.67µg per 100 grams
- Lamb, New Zealand, imported, liver, cooked, soaked and fried 11,828.57µg per 100 grams
- Lamb, New Zealand, imported, liver, raw 11,348.53µg per 100 grams
- Veal, variety meats and by-products, liver, cooked, braised 11,013.02µg per 100 grams
Common questions about Vitamin A
- How much vitamin A do I need?
- UK adult RI: 800 µg RAE/day.
- What foods are highest in vitamin A?
- Liver (especially beef liver) is the densest source. Eggs, dairy, oily fish, carrots, sweet potatoes, dark leafy greens, and red peppers also contribute.
- What's the difference between retinol and beta-carotene?
- Retinol is the preformed animal-source form, directly usable by the body. Beta-carotene is a plant-source precursor that the body converts to vitamin A as needed.
- Can you have too much vitamin A?
- Yes, excess preformed retinol (from supplements or large amounts of liver) during pregnancy is teratogenic. Beta-carotene from food is safe at any intake.