What Should We Know About Vitamins?
The role of vitamins in human life is easy to understand from their very name. The first part of the word – vita-is translated from Latin as “life”. Scientists have discovered vitamins and understood the mechanism of their action on the human body. This term was proposed by the discoverer of vitamins, the Polish researcher Kazimir Funk. In the early twentieth century, he discovered a substance in rice bran that could cure beriberi disease, caused, as it later turned out, by a lack of vitamin B1.
How Vitamins Function?
Since then, scientists have discovered dozens of such substances and understood the mechanism of their action on the human body. Vitamins do not supply energy like proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, but they are involved in the metabolism and help to normalize almost all processes in the body.
People get most vitamins only from food, because our body is able to synthesize only some of them, and then, in insufficient quantities.
What Vitamins Are There?
Scientists have identified 13 vitamins that are vital for humans. They are usually divided into two groups: water-soluble and fat-soluble.
Water-soluble vitamins include vitamin C and B vitamins: B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B5 (panthenic acid), B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (cyanocobalamins), vitamin PP (niacin), folic acid and vitamin H (biotin). Fat-soluble vitamins: A (retinol), E (tocopherols), D (calciferols), and K.
Some fat-soluble vitamins are synthesized in the body from provitamins. Vitamin A is synthesized from carotene obtained from plant products, and sterol is synthesized in the human skin and under the influence of ultraviolet light is converted into vitamin D.
Where to Search Vitamins?
The common belief that vitamins are found mainly in vegetables and fruits is nothing more than a misconception. There are few unique vitamins in plant foods: ascorbic acid, folic acid, vitamin K and the precursor of vitamin A-carotene.
Fat-soluble vitamins and their “relatives” from group B are mainly found in animal products, as well as vegetable oils and whole grain products. For example, a significant amount of vitamin A, which improves vision and skin, is found in the liver, milk and eggs. Vitamin D, which is responsible for the prevention of osteoporosis, should be found in fish, and B vitamins, which regulate carbohydrate metabolism, should be found in meat, dairy products, legumes, potatoes and bread with bran.
What If They Are Not Enough?
Unfortunately, modern man has significantly reduced energy consumption. As a result, the diet has also significantly decreased-primarily quantitatively. Therefore, it is very difficult to get all the necessary vitamins from food. And the rhythm of modern life, stress, chronic fatigue and diets provoke even greater vitamin deficiency-hypovitaminosis.
For deficiency of each vitamin has its own set of symptoms. The most well-known signs of a deep vitamin C deficiency are scurvy, B1-beriberi, D-rickets.
More common is a less pronounced form of vitamin deficiency, called hypovitaminosis. Its symptoms do not look dangerous: rapid fatigue, brittle hair, dry skin, acne, decreased visual acuity, frequent colds, bleeding gums. However, these are serious signs of a malfunction of the body caused by a lack of vitamins.
Vitamin A
It is the most important co-factor of a number of metabolic reactions and functions of the body. The vitamin is important for the health of the eyes, the normal functioning of the immune and reproductive systems. In addition, the trace element plays an important role in the functioning of the thyroid gland, heart, lungs, kidneys and some other organs. It also affects the growth and development of cells.
Lack of vitamin A weakens the immune system, and the body becomes more susceptible to viruses and infections.
There is an element in plants in the form of beta-carotene, but this is its inactive form. As the expert notes, the body often does not cope well with the processing of carotene into vitamin A. In its active form, it can be found in food of animal origin – beef liver, cod liver oil, salmon, butter, egg yolk.
Vitamin B
B vitamins are water-soluble substances that are vital to the human body. They are involved in the functioning of all systems and organs, help to normalize digestion and the nervous system, are part of the cell membranes.
Vitamin C
It is an essential vitamin for the healthy functioning of the immune system, as well as a powerful antioxidant (involved in the production of glutathione – the most important antioxidant). In addition, the trace element helps to fight high blood pressure, reduces the risk of cardiovascular and cancer diseases, prevents the development of gout, iron deficiency anemia, age-related retinal degeneration and dementia. It is necessary for the synthesis of collagen and connective tissues of the body, as well as for the protection of blood vessels.
Vitamin D
This is one of the most important trace elements for the body. It interacts with many genes (over a thousand), regulates the immune system and stops inflammatory processes. In addition, it plays a critical role in calcium metabolism and bone formation.
Vitamin E
The main function of vitamin E is related to its antioxidant properties: it protects cell membranes, proteins, fats and DNA, trapping free radicals and preventing them from spreading in the body. Thus, it prevents the process of oxidation of bad LDL cholesterol, which consequently accumulates in smaller amounts in the arteries. Since vitamin E also has anti-inflammatory, antiplatelet, and vasodilating properties, it is also classified as a cardioprotector.
Vitamin E is especially useful for nervous diseases, anemia, allows us to maintain a beautiful and young appearance, improves the condition of the skin. In large quantities, it contains parsley, red pepper, spinach, tomatoes, white cabbage, broccoli, pumpkin, berries. The most rich in them are vegetable fats.
Conclusion
We all know that vegetables, fruits, and naturally nutritious foods should be part of our diet. But we do not always understand that these are not only useful recommendations, but also vital principles that must be followed on a daily basis. Eating enough vegetables, fruits, and juices protects the human body from aging and disease. In addition, vitamins and minerals from natural products are absorbed much better than from pharmacological preparations. Therefore, the most reliable and safe way of vitamin therapy is to use environmentally friendly natural products rich in vitamins and trace elements.
