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Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients because they perform hundreds of roles in the body. There is a fine line between getting enough of these nutrients (which is healthy) and getting too much (which can end up harming you). Eating a healthy diet remains the best way to get sufficient amounts of the vitamins and minerals you need.
Every day, your body produces skin, muscle, and bone. It churns out rich red blood that carries nutrients and oxygen to remote outposts, and it sends nerve signals skipping along thousands of miles of brain and body pathways. It also formulates chemical messengers that shuttle from one organ to another, issuing the instructions that help sustain your life. But to do all this, your body requires some raw materials. These include at least 30 vitamins, minerals, and dietary components that your body needs but cannot manufacture on its own in sufficient amounts.
Vitamins: The Basics
Vitamins are organic compounds that are necessary in small amounts to sustain life. Most vitamins need to come from food because the body either does not produce them or produces very little. Each organism has different vitamin requirements. For example, humans need to obtain vitamin C from their diets — while dogs can produce all the vitamin C they need.
For humans, essential vitamins include vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K, and the B vitamins: thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pantothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), biotin (B7), folate (B9), and cobalamin (B12).
Minerals: The Basics
Minerals are inorganic elements that originate from rocks, soil, or water. However, you can absorb them indirectly from the environment or an animal who has eaten a particular plant.
Two kinds of minerals exist: macrominerals and trace minerals. Macrominerals are minerals your body needs in larger amounts, which include calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, and sulfur. Trace minerals are needed in smaller amounts: iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, cobalt, fluoride, and selenium.
How Vitamins and Minerals Work Together
Vitamins and minerals are considered essential nutrients—because acting in concert, they perform hundreds of roles in the body. They help shore up bones, heal wounds, and bolster your immune system. They also convert food into energy and repair cellular damage.
But trying to keep track of what all these vitamins and minerals do can be confusing. Readers often wonder why they can’t seem to get enough of certain vitamins. And with some vitamins and minerals, too much can be harmful. Understanding the role each vitamin and mineral plays in your body helps you make more informed dietary decisions.
Getting Your Vitaries and Minerals Through Diet
It’s best to get your vitamins from the food you eat. In some cases, you may need to take vitamin supplements, but talk to your healthcare provider before doing so. Sometimes supplements can interact with medications, other supplements, and the complexities of your own body’s needs. Your healthcare provider can offer personalized advice.
