Glossary · Nutrients
Vitamin A (children)
A vitamin that plays a part in eyesight and growth, found ready-made in eggs and dairy and as beta-carotene in orange and dark green foods like sweet potato, carrot and spinach. Too much from supplements can cause problems, so ask your pediatrician before giving one.
Two kinds on the plate
Vitamin A comes ready-made in animal foods like eggs, milk, yogurt, cheese and oily fish. Orange, yellow and dark green produce carries beta-carotene, which the body turns into vitamin A: sweet potato, carrots, butternut squash, pumpkin, mango, cantaloupe, spinach and broccoli. A plate with something orange or dark green most days covers a lot of ground.
Easy first foods
Many classic first foods are vitamin A foods. From around 6 months: mashed sweet potato or squash, carrot cooked until soft and mashed or served in soft sticks, ripe mango, or cooked spinach stirred into lentils. For toddlers: roasted sweet potato wedges, carrot muffins, or mango with yogurt. Cut mango into wide strips your baby can hold, or mash it, and cook carrots until they squash easily between your fingers.
Add a little fat
Vitamin A travels with fat, so cooking vegetables with a little olive oil or butter, or serving them alongside yogurt or cheese, fits nicely. It also makes vegetables taste better to many children. Roast sweet potato with olive oil, stir butter into squash, or serve mango with full-fat yogurt.
Supplements
Some health services, such as the NHS in the UK, suggest a children's vitamin that includes vitamin A for young children. Too much vitamin A from supplements can cause problems, so ask your pediatrician before giving one.
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References
Related terms
Miriel uses this concept across food scans, meal plans, and AI Coach responses where it is relevant to a child's profile. For the underlying clinical and scientific basis, see the research page.