femalenetwork.com

Vitamins are complex organic compounds essential in many biochemical reactions within the body such as converting food to energy, growth and repair of tissue and building up resistance to disease. They are also referred to as micronutrients because one needs very minute amounts of these vitamins.

Our daily requirements for each vitamin can fit on the tip of a ballpen! There are 13 vitamins, each with specific functions. They are further divided into two groups. The first group is the fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) which needs fat in order for it to be absorbed and utilized and can be stored in the body for long periods of time.

Vitamin A is needed for healthy skin and eyes. Vitamin D is for strong teeth and bones. Vitamin E helps in the formation of red blood cells and Vitamin D is necessary for blood clotting.

The second group is the water-soluble vitamins (C and B-complex) which dissolve in water and get flushed out of our bodies through our urine. Because of this our bodies need to replenish the water-soluble vitamins on a daily basis. Vitamin C is a powerful anti-oxidant and helps in increasing our resistance to disease. The B complex vitamins are involved in releasing energy from carbohydrates, fat and protein aside from more specific functions.

Fat-soluble vitamins are quite stable while the water-soluble ones are often sensitive to heat, oxygen and light. Many of these are also found just underneath the skin of most fruits and vegetables thus the vitamins can be lost through processing, cooking, chopping, peeling, and poor storage practices.

 

'Our daily requirements for each vitamin can fit on the tip of a ballpen!'

 

So far we have introduced six vitamins so why then did we say there are 13? This is because there are a number of B vitamins. What scientists thought was one B vitamin later turned out to be a complex of water-soluble vitamins. They were then numbered B1, B2, etc. There are only eight vitamins in the B group but there is a vitamin B12. This is because a number of substances proved to be non-vitamins and thus, were dropped. Our bodies cannot produce vitamins so we must rely on foods to meet our daily needs.

Fortunately, vitamins are found in a large variety of foods thus the basic rules of nutrition still apply – balance, variety and moderation.