Vitamins And You
Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients that the body requires to function normally. In essence, they contribute to a healthy life by supporting a variety of biological processes, including growth, digestion and nerve function. There are two types of vitamins; water-soluble and fat-soluble.
In humans, there are 13 vitamins: 4 fat-soluble (A, D, E, and K) and 9 water-soluble (8 B vitamins and vitamin C). Water-soluble vitamins, as the name suggests, dissolve easily in water and are easily excreted from the body. Since they are not readily stored, consistent daily intake is important. Fat-soluble vitamins, on the other hand, are absorbed through the intestinal tract with the help of lipids (fats). They are stored in the liver and fatty tissues of the body. These vitamins build up and remain for a longer time in the body as compared to water-soluble vitamins.
The importance of vitamins is not new. Long before vitamins were discovered, the ancient Egyptians knew that feeding liver to a person could help cure night blindness, a condition now known to be caused by a vitamin A deficiency. The advancement of ocean voyages in the 14th century gradually resulted in longer periods at sea without access to fresh fruits and vegetables. This led to a particular type of illness called “scurvy” that is caused by a vitamin C deficiency.
As vitamins are so important, many people turn to vitamin supplements to boost their vitamin intake. Vitamin supplements have become a multimillion dollar business and you need only to visit any local pharmacy, you will see the many brands and types of vitamins on sale. The perceived need for vitamin supplements has become a controversial issue. Doctors and dieticians recommend getting the required daily dose through proper diet rather than taking supplements as vitamins are easily found in food sources such as milk, potatoes and nuts to name a few. On the other hand, many people believe that because the fast-food generation of today has a poor diet mostly made up of meat and too little vegetables or fruit, the need for supplements is greater than ever.
If you are a healthy individual who eats a wide variety of foods such as fruit, vegetables, cereals, legumes, lean meat and fish, you most likely do not need supplements. The excess water-soluble vitamins you take from supplements will be flushed out of your body so you would be flushing your money down the toilet. The fat-soluble vitamins you get from supplements get stored in your liver, and an excess could lead to more serious problems such as a condition called “hypervitaminosis” or vitamin poisoning. Therefore, vitamin supplements are more useful for people who are on special diets such as vegans and those who need extra doses of specific vitamins such as pregnant women who would benefit from an increase dose of vitamin B9 or folic acid.