TY - JOUR AU - Burri, Betty J. AU - Chang, Jasmine S. T. AU - Turner, Tami TI - Citrus can help prevent vitamin A deficiency in developing countries JF - California Agriculture JO - Calif Agr Y1 - 2011/07/01 VL - 65 IS - 3 SP - 130 EP - 135 PB - University of California Agriculture and Nature Resources SN - 0008-0845 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.3733/ca.v065n03p130 L3 - 10.3733/ca.v065n03p130 AB - California is a major producer of tangerines and oranges, which contain carotenoids that form vitamin A. Deficiencies of this vitamin are common in southern Asia and Africa, causing blindness and more than one-half million deaths each year. We evaluated the potential of tangerines and oranges to prevent vitamin A deficiency worldwide by measuring their carotenoid concentrations, estimating the amounts needed to meet the recommended safe nutrient intake for vitamin A and determining their availability in countries with vitamin A deficiency. We conclude that tangerines — particularly Satsuma mandarins, which have high concentrations of the carotenoid beta-cryptoxanthin — but not oranges, could be useful in preventing vitamin A deficiency, though not as the sole source.