Vitamins and minerals
Theses are both essential in our diet in small quantities.
The term vitamins were coined in the early 20th century.
This was beneficial in describing those chemicals in food without which a pattern of deficiency symptoms occurs.
Minerals, are those elements that are found in the body other than carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen
In a series of blog’s jam going to talk about the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, and the water-soluble vitamins, those of the B- vitamins, and vitamin C.
Along with talking about how important fluid balance is in our body and the major minerals
Many people would have heard of scurvy, which was a condition with symptoms were loss of hair and teeth, bleeding gums, slow healing of wounds, and eventually death.
This was a big danger of long sea journey.
Hundreds of sailors and explorers died from scurvy until a Scottish physician, James Lind, in the 1750s discovered that adding a daily portion of citrus fruit to the rations of those at sea could prevent the condition, whereas adding cider, vinegar or various other substances that he tested, could not.
Additionally, he was unable to confirm his work by experiments on land since, although he tried to restrict the types of food eaten by a group of volunteers to attempt to produce scurvy in them, he was unable to do so, probably because it can take several months for the condition to develop, and in that time his volunteers occasionally cheated on their diet. However, though he died disillusioned, Lind had actually discovered the importance and source of vitamin C.
vitamins use to be given a letter until they were known as their chemical structures
They are generally still referred to by that letter, as well as by their chemical name, for example, vitamin C or ascorbic acid.
The body can store fat-soluble vitamins, but any excess water-soluble vitamins are easily removed from the body in the urine, so regular intake is necessary.
Vitamins are, however, needed in only small quantities.
Some requirements of vitamins are needed in less than 1 mg (1mg is one-thousandth of a gram). These are therefore measured in micrograms per day, written as μg per day.
And 1 μg is one-thousandth of a milligram.
Fat-soluble vitamins
vitamin A 0.6 mg for women; 0.7 mg for men liver, cheese, eggs, butter, oily fish (such as mackerel), milk, fortified* margarine, yoghurt
vitamin D 0.01 mg (10 μg) for certain groups, e.g., pregnant women, those who rarely go outside, etc. oily fish, liver, eggs, margarine, some breakfast cereals, bread, powdered milk
vitamin E 3 mg for women; 4 mg for men plant oils (such as soya, corn, and olive oil), nuts, seeds, wheat germ, some green leafy vegetables
vitamin K 0.07 mg (70 μg), or 1 μg per kg of body weight green leafy vegetables (such as broccoli and spinach), vegetable oils, cereals; lesser amounts can also be found in meat (such as pork), and dairy foods (such as cheese)
Water-soluble vitamins
thiamine (vitamin B1) 0.8 mg for women; 1 mg for men pork, vegetables, milk, cheese, peas, fresh and dried fruit, eggs, wholegrain breads, fortified breakfast cereals
riboflavin (vitamin B2) 1.1 mg for women; 1.3 mg for men milk, eggs, fortified* breakfast cereals, rice, mushrooms.
niacin (vitamin B3) 13 mg for women; 17 mg for men beef, pork, chicken, wheat flour, maize flour, eggs, milk
vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) 1.2 mg for women; 1.4 mg for men liver, pork, chicken, turkey, cod, bread, whole cereals (such as oatmeal, wheatgerm and rice), eggs, vegetables, soybeans, peanuts, milk, potatoes, breakfast cereals
folate (folic acid, vitamin B9) 0.2 mg, but 0.4 mg extra for women who are, or plan to be, pregnant broccoli, sprouts, spinach, peas, chickpeas, potatoes, yeast extract, brown rice, fruit (such as oranges and bananas), breakfast cereals, some bread
vitamin B12 (cobalamin) 0.0015 mg (1.5 μg) meat (particularly liver), salmon, cod, milk, cheese, eggs, yeast extract, breakfast cereals
pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) none given – should be sufficient in normal diet chicken, beef, potatoes, porridge, tomatoes, liver, kidneys, eggs, broccoli, whole-grains (such as brown rice and wholemeal bread), breakfast cereals
biotin (vitamin H) 0.01–0.2 mg found in meat such as kidney and liver, along with eggs, fruit, and vegetables, including dried mixed fruit
vitamin C (ascorbic acid) 40 mg wide variety of fruit and vegetables, especially peppers, broccoli, sprouts, sweet potatoes, cranberries, citrus fruits, kiwi fruit
when you see ‘Fortified’ on a product it indicates that certain vitamin has been added during manufacture of the food product.
By Aaron Christopher Slade
