[Vitamin deficiency in developing countries]

Vitamin A deficiency is frequent in the tropics. It causes xerophthalamia, which, in severe cases, can develop into corneal ulceration, keratomalacia and blindness and increases morbidity and mortality of infectious diseases in infants and children. Vitamin A deficiency can be reduced by the promotion of a nutrition rich in vitamin A, by fortification of food with vitamin A and by high-dose vitamin A supplementation. Other vitamin deficiency disorders are rare or occur only in limited areas or in disadvantaged people. In refugee camps, scurvy, beriberi, pellagra and xerophthalamia occur. Travelers from developed countries are rarely affected by vitamin deficiency disorders, if they eat regularly the large variety of fruits and vegetables usually available in tropical countries. Their vitamin stocks are anyhow sufficient for several weeks.