Whereas this polar bear could easily make a meal out of you, one chew of his liver could possibly be sufficient to ship you to the hospital. Liver has long been a staple in lots of diets. Deep-fried hen livers are a favorite in parts of the American South. In Japan, you can order a heaping helping of sashimi made with raw fish liver. As scrumptious (or disgusting) as some of these dishes could sound to you, not every hen, fish or mammal essentially presents the most effective elements for a culinary masterpiece. Journey to Germany and you may feast on traditional liverwurst. The native peoples of the Arctic have never shied away from cooking up some polar bear stew, but they've long identified to avoid consuming the livers of assorted arctic creatures. In actual fact, for those who ever have the chance to strive polar bear liver, suppose twice -- it stands out as the final meal you ever eat. Western explorers, nevertheless, realized the hard manner. Perhaps essentially the most horrific symptom they encountered was peeling pores and skin. Even the thick skin on the bottoms of a affected person's ft could peel away, leaving the underlying flesh bloody and exposed. The worst circumstances ended in liver damage, hemorrhage, coma and loss of life. These explorers suffered from acute hypervitaminosis A, a situation ensuing from the overconsumption of vitamin A throughout a brief time frame. While milder cases merely involved flaking around the mouth, some accounts reported circumstances of full-physique pores and skin loss. The polar bear's liver, very similar to those of arctic seals and huskies, incorporates extraordinarily high ranges of retinol (the form of vitamin A found in members of the animal kingdom). On the subsequent page, we'll discover why polar bears carry around a lot vitamin A in their livers and the way essential their retinol tolerance is to their survival. Whereas some vitamins dissolve in water, vitamin A only dissolves in fats. Instead, it collects in the body's filtration organ, the liver, where it may possibly reach toxic levels. Vitamin A is a crucial constructing block for many animals. Because of this, not like other vitamins, excess vitamin A would not exit the physique in urine. People only require it in very small quantities, nevertheless it performs a vital function in eyesight, reproduction, fetal improvement, growth, immune response and the cellular formation of tissue. Vitamin A tolerability in humans varies relying on age, gender and bodily situation. Without enough vitamin A in your system, you may simply end up dealing with signs just as dangerous as these associated with hypervitaminosis A. Deficiencies can result in dry skin, diarrhea, blindness, progress retardation and even demise. We usually absorb it by the consumption of foods corresponding to spinach, broccoli, eggs, milk and varied meats. In reality, their physiology evolved to tolerate a lot vitamin A for just one motive: to eat seals. Like many animals, polar bears profit from maintaining a certain quantity of vitamin A of their system, but there's nothing to indicate they actually require such massive portions. For those who ate a bearded seal's liver, you'd suffer from hypervitaminosis A, but the polar bear can tolerate and benefit from the feast. The seals retailer high ranges of vitamin A in order to swiftly develop and nourish their young in a harsh, chilly setting. Within the wild, polar bears feed nearly completely on bearded seals and ringed seals, each of which retailer high ranges of vitamin A of their livers and blubber. Remember, vitamin A performs a key position in progress and natal growth. So if the blue plate particular at your favourite diner is ever sautéed polar bear liver, you might just wish to stick to a salad. The seals depend on this vitamin to quickly advance them by means of their susceptible pup stages. Explore the hyperlinks on the following web page to be taught more about vitamin A and polar bear liver. One polar bear liver usually accommodates as much vitamin A as 79 to one hundred fifteen rooster eggs. That award-winning red panda teddy meal is available in at practically twice the tolerable higher limits of human vitamin A consumption. What does global warming must do with the decline in the polar bear population? Brown, Dan. "Vitamin A Toxicity." Cornell College Department of Animal Science. AZA Bear Tag. "Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus)." Affiliation of Zoos and Aquariums Standardizes Animal Care Guidelines. Eliasen, Mogens. "The Harmful(?) Vitamin A." K9joy Training. Higdon, Jane. "Vitamin A." Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State College. Hicks, R. Marian. "The scientific basis for regarding vitamin A and its analogues as anti-carcinogenic brokers." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society. International federation of Competitive Eating. Lintzenich, Barbara, et al. Brookfield Zoo Conservation Biology and Research Heart. Canadian Journal of Zoology. Penniston, Kristina L. and Sherry A. Tanumihardjo. Mos, Lizzy and Peter S. Ross. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The University of Cambridge Dunn Nutritional Laboratory and Medical Analysis Council. Rodahl, Ok. and T. Moore. Slaughter, Kip. E-mail interview.
