What the Evidence Shows
While vaccination remains the most effective way to prevent measles, research suggests that vitamin A may play a role in easing the severity of the illness, especially in certain populations. However, it is important to understand the limitations of vitamin A in this context and the specific conditions under which it may be beneficial.
Key Highlights:
- Prevention through vaccination: Vitamin A is not a substitute for vaccination. Immunization is the most reliable and effective way to protect against measles infection.
- Supportive role in treatment: In some cases, especially in areas where vitamin A deficiency is widespread—such as parts of Africa—supplementation has been linked to a reduction in severe measles-related complications, including vision loss and death.
- Limited use in the U.S.: In the United States, vitamin A deficiency is relatively rare. As a result, vitamin A therapy is not commonly used in measles treatment, and high-dose supplements should only be administered under medical guidance due to the potential risks of toxicity.
While vitamin A can support measles management in specific cases, particularly in undernourished populations, it is not a preventative measure and should be used with care.
Rising Number of Cases
With a growing measles outbreak in Texas nearing 200 confirmed cases and already linked to at least two deaths, public health officials are intensifying efforts to encourage vaccination across the state. The outbreak, centered in Gaines County, has raised alarms due to its rapid spread and potential for severe complications, particularly among unvaccinated children. As health professionals continue to push for immunization as the most effective preventive strategy, an additional conversation has emerged around vitamin A therapy as a potential tool in measles management.
Among the more vocal proponents of this approach is U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who recently highlighted vitamin A’s role in reducing measles-related complications and mortality. However, health experts caution that while vitamin A may help support immune function in certain scenarios, it is not a substitute for vaccination, nor is it a cure for the disease.
The Potential Role of Vitamin A in Measles Outcomes
In a recent op-ed for Fox News, Secretary Kennedy pointed to studies suggesting that vitamin A could significantly reduce the risk of dying from measles, particularly in children. In his interview with the network, he also confirmed that the federal government had initiated the distribution of vitamin A doses to the hardest-hit areas of Texas.
Kennedy referenced a systematic review that found administering two high-dose supplements of vitamin A to children with measles could potentially lower mortality rates by as much as 62%. This data stems from trials conducted primarily in sub-Saharan Africa, where widespread malnutrition and vitamin A deficiency have made measles particularly deadly.
Christopher Sudfeld, ScD, lead author of the cited study and associate professor of global health and nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, emphasized that the majority of evidence supporting vitamin A therapy comes from studies conducted decades ago in countries such as Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia. In these regions, the underlying nutritional deficiencies create conditions in which vitamin A supplementation can make a dramatic difference.
Why Vitamin A Therapy Is Context-Specific
Despite promising data from these earlier studies, experts agree that the benefits of vitamin A supplementation are context-dependent. “The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey has suggested that less than 1 percent of the U.S. population is vitamin A-deficient based on lab tests,” says Dr. Sudfeld. This low prevalence of deficiency in the U.S. raises questions about whether the same treatment would yield similar benefits domestically.
Vitamin A is naturally found in a variety of foods that are widely accessible in the United States, including dairy products, leafy greens, carrots, sweet potatoes, and fish. Because the body stores vitamin A, it doesn’t need to be consumed daily to maintain healthy levels.
Amy Edwards, MD, an infectious disease specialist at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital and associate professor at Case Western Reserve University, explains, “The nice thing about vitamin A is you don’t have to take it every day, because your body stores it. So you don’t have to worry if your kid only eats vitamin A-rich foods two or three times a week — that may be enough.”
In well-nourished populations, a varied and balanced diet is typically sufficient to maintain healthy vitamin A levels, supporting overall immune health and potentially lowering the risk of complications from a range of infections, including measles.
Limited Evidence for Use in Non-Deficient Populations
Dr. Edwards is among several experts urging caution about promoting vitamin A supplementation as a frontline defense in the current outbreak. “Published papers don’t show if additional supplementation in children who are not deficient is helpful,” she says. “We generally recommend only giving vitamin A to children who are hospitalized with measles, because that way, if there’s even just a smidge of benefit, we want to correct that deficiency, if it exists.”
She also stresses the need for more up-to-date research on how vitamin A affects measles outcomes in well-nourished, vaccinated populations — a context very different from the African trials often cited. Until then, public health guidance continues to recommend vitamin A as a supplemental treatment only in specific, medically supervised situations.
Use With Medical Supervision Only
Patsy Stinchfield, NP, immediate past president of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), also highlights the risks of unsupervised supplementation. “When prescribed by a knowledgeable provider — usually for hospitalized children on the day of diagnosis and a second dose on day 2 — vitamin A is considered supportive management, much like giving oxygen to someone with pneumonia,” she explains. “It doesn’t cure or treat the virus, but supports immune function while the patient is in the acute stage of the illness.”
Because the doses used in measles cases are substantially higher than those found in typical multivitamins or food sources, they must be administered with caution. “Too much vitamin A can cause serious side effects like liver damage,” warns Dr. Sudfeld. “Excessive amounts can also lead to dizziness, nausea, headache, coma, and even death,” as noted by the NFID.
Immunization Is Still the Best Protection
While vitamin A may have a place in managing measles complications, especially for hospitalized patients or those with nutritional deficiencies, experts are unified on one point: vitamin A is not a preventive tool. “Supplements will not prevent people from getting measles,” Dr. Sudfeld reiterates. “Only vaccination does that.”
The current outbreak in Texas underscores the importance of staying up to date on immunizations. Measles is one of the most contagious viruses known, and once it begins circulating in a community, unvaccinated individuals — especially children — face a high risk of infection.
Parents concerned about their child’s nutrition or vulnerability to measles are encouraged to speak with their healthcare providers. Doctors can help determine if any supplementation is needed and ensure that immunizations are current.
In short, vitamin A therapy may support recovery from measles in certain cases, particularly among deficient individuals, but it is not a replacement for the lifesaving protection that vaccination provides.