Are You Getting What You Need?
Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients because they perform hundreds of roles in the body. There is a fine line between getting enough of these nutrients (which is healthy) and getting too much (which can end up harming you). Eating a healthy diet remains the best way to get sufficient amounts of the vitamins and minerals you need.
What Are Vitamins?
A vitamin is an organic compound, which means that it contains carbon.
Fat-Soluble And Water-Soluble Vitamins
Vitamins are either soluble, or dissolvable, in fat or water. The body stores fat-soluble vitamins in fatty tissue and the liver, and reserves of these vitamins can stay in the body for days and sometimes months.
Dietary fats help the body absorb fat-soluble vitamins through the intestinal tract. They leave the body via the urine. Because of this, people need a more regular supply of water-soluble vitamins than fat-soluble ones.
Vitamin C and all the B vitamins are water-soluble . Vitamin supplements Many people in the United States take multivitamins and other supplements, though these may not be necessary or helpful, according to research . A balanced, varied diet that contains plenty of fruits and vegetables should be the primary source of vitamins.
Fortified foods and supplements may be appropriate in some cases, however, such as during pregnancy, for people with restricted diets, and for people with specific health issues.
When Is The Best Time To Take Supplements?
Function
There are 13 essential vitamins. This means that these vitamins are required for the body to work properly. They are:
Vitamin A
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
Vitamin E
Vitamin K
Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
Vitamin B3 (niacin)
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
Vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin)
Pantothenic acid (B5)
Biotin (B7)
Folate (folic acid or B9)
Vitamins are grouped into two categories:
Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in the body’s liver, fatty tissue, and muscles.
The four fat-soluble vitamins are vitamins A, D, E, and K. These vitamins are absorbed more easily by the body in the presence of dietary fat. The nine water-soluble vitamins are vitamin C and all the B vitamins. They have to be consumed on a regular basis to prevent shortages or deficiencies in the body.
The exception to this is vitamin B12, which can be stored in the liver for many years. Some vitamin-like nutrients are also needed by the body such a.