Whereas this polar bear could simply make a meal out of you, one chunk ikea panda teddy of his liver could possibly be enough to send 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 may order a heaping serving to of sashimi made with raw fish liver. As delicious (or disgusting) as some of these dishes might sound to you, not every fowl, fish or mammal essentially provides the best components for a culinary masterpiece. Journey to Germany and you'll feast on conventional liverwurst. The native peoples of the Arctic have by no means shied away from cooking up some polar bear stew, but they've long recognized to keep away from consuming the livers of assorted arctic creatures. In actual fact, if you ever have the possibility to try polar bear liver, think twice -- it may be the last meal you ever eat. Western explorers, nonetheless, discovered the exhausting way. Maybe probably the most horrific symptom they encountered was peeling pores and skin. Even the thick pores and skin on the bottoms of a affected person's toes could peel away, leaving the underlying flesh bloody and exposed. The worst instances ended in liver damage, hemorrhage, coma and loss of life. These explorers suffered from acute hypervitaminosis A, a condition resulting from the overconsumption of vitamin A throughout a brief time frame. Whereas milder cases merely concerned flaking around the mouth, some accounts reported instances of full-body skin loss. The polar bear's liver, much like these of arctic seals and huskies, comprises extremely excessive levels of retinol (the form of vitamin A present in members of the animal kingdom). On the following web page, we'll discover why polar bears carry around a lot vitamin A of their livers and the way essential their retinol tolerance is to their survival. While some vitamins dissolve in water, vitamin A solely dissolves in fat. As an alternative, it collects in the physique's filtration organ, the liver, the place it could actually reach toxic ranges. Vitamin A is a vital constructing block for a lot of animals. Which means, unlike other vitamins, excess vitamin A does not exit the physique in urine. People solely require it in very small quantities, but it surely performs a vital function in eyesight, reproduction, fetal development, development, immune response and the cellular formation of tissue. Vitamin A tolerability in people varies depending on age, gender and bodily situation. With out sufficient vitamin A in your system, you may easily end up dealing with symptoms simply as dangerous as these associated with hypervitaminosis A. Deficiencies can result in dry skin, diarrhea, blindness, development retardation and even demise. We typically absorb it via the consumption of foods corresponding to spinach, broccoli, eggs, milk and various meats. The truth is, their physiology developed to tolerate so much vitamin A for only one motive: to eat seals. Like many animals, polar bears profit from protecting a certain amount of vitamin A in their system, but there's nothing to indicate they actually require such large portions. In the event you ate a bearded seal's liver, you'd suffer from hypervitaminosis A, but the polar bear can tolerate and enjoy the feast. The seals store high ranges of vitamin A in order to swiftly grow and nourish their young in a harsh, chilly surroundings. In the wild, polar bears feed nearly completely on bearded seals and ringed seals, each of which store high levels of vitamin A in their livers and blubber. Remember, vitamin A plays a key position in growth and natal growth. So if the blue plate particular at your favourite diner is ever sautéed polar bear liver, you may just want to stick with a salad. The seals depend on this vitamin to quickly advance them by means of their susceptible pup stages. Explore the links on the following web page to study more about vitamin A and polar bear liver. One polar bear liver typically incorporates as a lot vitamin A as seventy nine to 115 chicken eggs. That award-profitable meal comes in at almost twice the tolerable upper limits of human vitamin A consumption. What does global warming should do with the decline in the polar bear inhabitants? Brown, Dan. "Vitamin A Toxicity." Cornell College Division of Animal Science. AZA Bear Tag. "Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus)." Affiliation of Zoos and Aquariums Standardizes Animal Care Pointers. Eliasen, Mogens. "The Dangerous(?) Vitamin A." K9joy Schooling. Higdon, Jane. "Vitamin A." Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University. Hicks, R. Marian. "The scientific basis for relating to vitamin A and its analogues as anti-carcinogenic agents." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society. International federation of Competitive Eating. Lintzenich, Barbara, et al. Brookfield Zoo Conservation Biology and Research Center. 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, K. and T. Moore. Slaughter, Kip. E-mail interview.
