I wrote a series of posts this year on vitamins. I tried to include all the main vitamins and minerals. This was a project that I had thought about for a couple of years and I finally put it all together this year.
In these posts I included what we need these vitamins for, what are the sources of these vitamins, and the amount and toxicity levels for each of the vitamins:
Vitamin A – is important for skin and eyesite. Vitamin A is also an antioxidant and helps your immune system
Vitamin B – These are the classic vitamins for antioxidants and are supposed to be very helpful for combatting stress. Watch out for your multi vitamins as they tend to be very low in B vitamins since they are kind of expensive to produce
Vitamin B3 – Niacin is one of the B vitamins most important for energy as it converts carbs into glucose and glycogen
Vitamin C – is a water-soluble vitamin, which is necessary in the body to form collagen in bones, cartilage, muscle, and blood vessels and aids in the absorption of iron.
Vitamin D – This is a vitamin that we get primarily from sunlight and most people are very deficient in this vitamin. I have written lots on Vitamin D deficiency and this article will help you understand the importance of vitamin D
Vitamin E – Helps to fight cholesterol, cancer, and your skin as well as tissues and internal organs. You get Vitamin E from green leafy veggies as well as other places
Vitamin K – Vitamin K is necessary for normal clotting of blood in humans. Specifically, vitamin K is required for the liver to make factors that are necessary for blood to properly clot
Zinc – Helps the immune system fight off invading bacteria and viruses. The body also needs zinc to make proteins and DNA, the genetic material in all cells
Calcium – Calcium is required for muscle contraction, blood vessel expansion and contraction, secretion of hormones and enzymes, and transmitting impulses throughout the nervous system
Chromium – Chromium is known to enhance the action of insulin, a hormone critical to the metabolism and storage of carbohydrate, fat, and protein in the body. Chromium also appears to be directly involved in carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism, but more research is needed to determine the full range of its roles in the body.
I think that these vitamins and minerals are important to know about and you can be tested for deficiencies and even though some may fight me on this I think it is important to take supplements of these as a precaution to make sure that you do not become deficient