Vitamin A (RAE)Nutrition library
Vitamin A (RAE)
Total vitamin A as retinol activity equivalents (RAE): food RAE = retinol + β-carotene/12. Scored for adequacy against the age- and phase-aware RDA; the teratogen ceiling remains on preformed retinol alone.
Trimester focus
| Stage | For the mother | For the baby |
|---|---|---|
| First trimester | Meet the RAE RDA mainly from mixed diet; prefer carotenoids when topping up. | Supports early eye and organ differentiation without relying on liver-heavy retinol. |
| Second trimester | RAE needs hold; keep carotenoid-rich plants in rotation. | Continues organ maturation and immune development. |
| Third trimester | Lactation-bound RAE needs rise postpartum; pregnancy RDA is slightly above non-pregnant. | Builds vitamin-A stores for infancy — still separate from the preformed ceiling. |
Target note
IOM food conversion: RAE = retinol + β-carotene/12. Supplement β-carotene (/2) not modeled in v1. Preformed UL is on retinol, not RAE.