Top 10 Foods Highest in Vitamin A

Vitamin A is an essential vitamin required for vision, gene transcription, boosting immune function, and great skin health. A deficiency in vitamin A can lead to blindness and increased viral infection, however deficiency is only considered a problem in developing countries where it is a leading cause of blindness in children. Over consumption of vitamin A can lead to jaundice, nausea, loss of appetite, irritability, vomiting, and even hair loss. Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin, and therefore, needs to be consumed with fat in order to have optimal absorption. High vitamin A foods include sweet potatoes, carrots, dark leafy greens, winter squashes, lettuce, dried apricots, cantaloupe, bell peppers, fish, liver, and tropical fruits. The current daily value for Vitamin A is 5000 international units (IU). Below is a list high vitamin A foods, click here for high vitamin A foods by nutrient density, and here for an extended list of vitamin A rich foods.

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#1: Sweet Potato (Cooked)

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup (200g)	Per medium potato (114g)
19218IU (384% DV)	38436IU (769% DV)	21909IU (438% DV)

Other Types of Sweet Potato High in Vitamin A (%DV per cup): Frozen Sweet Potato, cooked, cubed (578%), Canned Sweet Potato (444%), and Raw Sweet Potato, cubed (377%). 

#2: Carrots (Cooked)

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup, sliced (156g)	Per carrot (46g)
17033IU (341% DV)	26572IU (532% DV)	7835IU (157% DV)

Other Types of Carrot High in Vitamin A (%DV per cup):Frozen Carrots, cooked, cubed (494%), and Raw Carrots, sliced (408%). 

#3: Dark Leafy Greens (Kale, Cooked)

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup, chopped (130g)
13621IU (272% DV)	17707IU (354% DV)

Other Dark Leafy Greens High in Vitamin A (%DV per cup, cooked): Frozen Spinach (458%), Frozen Collards (391%), Frozen Kale (382%), Frozen Turnip Greens (353%), Spinach (377%), Dandelion Greens (305%), Collards (289%), Beet Greens & Turnip Greens (220%), Swiss Chard (214%), and Pak Choi (144%). 

#4: Squash (Butternut, Cooked)

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup, cubes (205g)	Per 1/2 cup, cubes (103g)
11155IU (223% DV)	22868IU (457% DV)	11434IU (229% DV)

Other Squash High in Vitamin A (%DV per cup, cooked): Hubbard, cubed (275%), Pumpkin, mashed (282%), and an average of All Varieties Of Winter Squash, cubed (214%). Click to see complete nutrition facts.

#5: Cos or Romaine Lettuce 

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup, shredded (47g)	Per head (626g)
8710IU (174% DV)	4094IU (82% DV)	54525IU (1090% DV)

Other Types of Lettuce High in Vitamin A (%DV per cup, shredded): Green Leaf (53%), Red Leaf (42%), Butterhead (36%), and Chicory (33%). 

#6: Dried Apricots 

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup (119g)	Per 1/2 cup (60g)
12669IU (253% DV)	15076IU (302% DV)	7538IU (151% DV)

Other Dried Fruit High in Vitamin A (%DV per 1/2 cup):Prunes (24%), and Dried Peaches (17%)

#7:Cantaloupe Melon

Vitamin A in 100g	Per cup, cubes (160g)	Per medium wedge (69g)
3382IU (68% DV)	5411IU (108% DV)	2334IU (47% DV)

A medium wedge of cantaloupe melon contains 23 calories and 0.1g fat