What are vitamins?

These are naturally occurring chemicals essential of health.

For many of us, the word "vitamin" conjures up the image of bottles of pills lining the shelves of the local chemist, or perhaps the fortified cereals that we eat for breakfast each morning. But these chemical substances occur naturally, in minute quantities, in most of the foods that we eat and, for the most part, we rely on food sources to meet our vitamin needs. However, there are a few vitamins that we obtain by other means: for example, mirco-organisms in the intestine-commonly known as gut flora-produce vitamin K and biotin, while oneform of vitamin D is made in the skin with the help nature ultraviolet sunlight.

#Colourful #Food

Why we need vitamins

Although vitamins contain no calories, they are essential for normal growth and development, and many chemical reactions in the body. Vitamins are necessary for the body to use the calories provided by the food that we eat and help process proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Vitamins are also involved in building cells, tissues, and organs- vitamin C, for example, helps produce healthy skin.

Vitamins are classified as fat-soluble or water-soluble, based on how they are absorbed by the body, Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble, while the water-soluble vitamins include vitamin C and the B-complex vitamins (B1 or thiamin, B2 or riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, B6, B12, biotin, and folate).

Research has shown that foods rich in antioxidants are particularly beneficial for health. Antioxidants include vitamins A, C, and E, and they are found in a wide range of vegetables and fruits, Antioxidants neutralize free radicals. A buildup of free radicals can damage body cells and tissues, resulting in disease. Studies have shown that diets rich in vegetables and fruits result in a lower incidence of some diseases, including certain cancers.

#Eggs have #Good sources of #Vitamins #B

Vitamin deficiencies

Deficiencies of vitamins are either primary of secondary. A primary deficiency occurs because you do not get enough of the vitamin do not get enough of the vitamin in the food you eat. A secondary deficiency may be due to a lifestyle factor, such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, or the use of certain medications that interfere with the absorption or the body's sue of the vitamin. Prolonged use of antibiotics will kill off the useful gut flora that make vitamin K. Vitamin deficiencies may also be due to an underlying problem, such as an intestinal disorder, that prevents or limits the absorption or use of the vitamin.

Well-known vitamin deficiencies(and the diseases they cause) are B1 (beriberi), niacin (pellagra), vitamin C (survey), and vitamin D (rickets). In Britain today, however, such deficiencies are rare due to an adequate food supply for most people, as well as food fortification programmes that add vitamins,

Scientists now have shifted their focus to discovering ways in which prevent disease, boots the body's protection against infection, and slow down the ageing process. At the same time, public interest in vitamins has heightened. This has been prompted by headlines in the media and widespread advertising by the manufacturers of nutrient supplement.

The definitions of the amounts of vitamins (and minerals) that you should aim to receive every day - the recommended daily amounts (RDAs)

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How do you get vitamins?

For the most part, we rely on the food sources or supplements to meet our vitamin and mineral requirements. However, there are a few exceptions to this; for example, gut flora (the micro-organisms in the intestinal tract) produce vitamin K. Vitamin D is also converted by the skin into a form that the body can use with the help of ultraviolet light in sunlight.

Because your body makes only a few vitamins itself, a balanced diet is very important- it ensures that your body receives the sufficient amount of vitamins, as well as minerals, that it requires each day.

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Vitamin Overdosing

The likelihood of consuming too much of vitamin from food is remote, but overdosing from vitamin supplementation often occurs. For example, many people take large amounts of vitamin C, usually in the belief that his will relieve or "cure" a cold. However, overdosing on vitamin C can lead to diarrhoea or kidney stones. If you take vitamin supplements, you should always do so on the advice of your GP or a dietitian, and first consider whether your diet could be improved instead.