Based on data from RIVM’s Food Consumption Survey, it appears that the vitamin A intake of a large portion of the Dutch population is too low. Vitamin A deficiency can result in skin problems, dull hair, night blindness and, in the worst-case scenario, blindness. Whether the low vitamin A intake in the Netherlands has also caused health problems was unknown. RIVM has looked into this.
It is not possible to determine vitamin A levels for a large group of people, as this value is only lowered when someone has extreme vitamin A deficiency. Based on the data from the Food Consumption Survey, such a deficiency is not to be expected.
In 2019, RIVM conducted interviews with healthcare professionals, such as general practitioners (GPs), opticians, ophthalmologists, dieticians and dermatologists, to determine whether they come across people with vitamin-A related symptoms in their practice.
What are the outcomes?
According to healthcare professionals, it cannot be stated with certainty whether health problems such as skin problems or night blindness are caused by vitamin A deficiency. They currently rarely identify this as the cause of the symptoms.
It looks like low vitamin A intake in the Netherlands, as measured by the Food Consumption Survey, is not causing health problems. The scientific substantiation for this finding is limited, however. Follow-up research is necessary to determine whether these symptoms are indeed rare or whether healthcare professionals are failing to identify them.