Vitamins are an important part of a health diet. Unlike carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, vitamins do not directly provide building blocks or energy for your body; vitamins function as assistants to your body in creating and breakdown down building blocks and storing and releasing energy.
Vitamins come in two basic types: water-soluble and fat-soluble (see the table on the website below)
quick-guide to vitamins by shoppe.md online pharmacy
If your diet generally follows the USDA Food Guide Pyramid, you will get the recommended daily allowances of vitamins (the amount people generally need). But there are many reasons why these guidelines might not get us the vitamins we need.
* Day-to-day living: In the rush of daily life, it may be hard to eat a consistently balanced diet. Sometimes we skip meals or buy them from sources (like fast-food restaurants) where we do not have easy access to information about nutritional value.
* Pregnancy: If you are pregnant (or breastfeeding), you may need to significantly change your vitamin intake. Folic acid is crucial to the brain and nervous system development of, but at the same time an excess of other vitamins (including vitamin A) can cause serious fetal injury.
* Seniority: Seniors often have difficulties eating or digesting certain foods, including those that can provide vitamins
* Diets: Being on low-calorie diets or diets that restrict certain types of food can significantly impact getting enough of all kinds of vitamins.
So for many of us, vitamin supplements will be helpful in getting and staying healthy. But like anything else we do for our health, it's as important to know the risks as the benefits.
* The "Too Much of a Good Thing" Trap: Vitamins in the proper doses are good for you. But many vitamins are toxic in large quantities, so taking more than enough may be a bad idea. Excess vitamin A can lead to nausea, vomiting, and peeling skin, and over the long-term can lead to significant damage to bones, brain and nerves. It can also be very dangerous for a developing fetus. Vitamin E can cause a rise in LDL ("bad") cholesterol, and like all fat-soluble vitamins, is stored in the liver, so if you take a little bit extra every day, the impact can show up over time. Even vitamin D, the bone-building vitamin, can actually encourage bone loss if taken in excess.
* Vitamins are not food: Vitamins are sometimes called "micronutrients." Small doses can keep us healthy. However, they are not a substitute for the food that your body needs to make energy and rebuild damaged tissue. Diets that severely restrict or eliminate proteins, fats, or carbohydrates can impair functioning, and vitamins cannot make up for that.
* Fetuses and children are not grown-ups: Children have special vitamins for a reason - their bodies need different things than adults do. Treat children's supplements like any other medication; they may taste like candy, but letting your child take more than the recommended dose can have significant consequences. To keep a fetus growing steadily and correctly, a vitamin discussion should be part of your regular prenatal care.
Dietary Guidelines for Americans, www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines
U.S.D.A. " Food Guide Pyramid," www.usda.gov/cnpp/pyramid2.htm
"Getting enough vitamins. Do you need to supplement a healthy diet?" Mayo Clinic Womens Healthsource. Volume 3, Issue March 7, p 4-5, 2003
Kmietowicz , Z. "Food watchdog warns against high doses of vitamins and minerals," British Medical Journal Volume 326, Issue1001, 2003
Oakley, GP and Mandel JS, "Folic acid fortification remains an urgent health priority," British Medical Journal, Volume 329, Issue 7479, p1375-1376, 2004
Copyright (C) Shoppe.MD and Ian Mason, 2004-2005
Ian Mason, owner of Shoppe.MD, your source for quick-guide to vitamins by shoppe.md online pharmacy, drug information and support forums.
Ian is a fat-to-fit student of health, weight loss, exercise, and several martial arts; maintaining several websites in an effort to help provide up-to-date and helpful information for other who share his interests in health of body and mind.
whole house cleaning Deerfield ..Weight Lifting Supplement ? what is it?The term "weight lifting... Read More
Looking for quality nutritional supplements can seem quite overwhelming at... Read More
Nutrients form the basis for your body, emotional and spiritual... Read More
Simply stated, the Greek word glyco refers to "sweet." Hence,... Read More
Calcium Supplement ? why calcium.Why is calcium supplement so important?... Read More
Benefits of using Vitamin A products:Retinol is pure and active... Read More
According to Dr John Scurr leading Consultant Vascular Surgeon and... Read More
How can I improve my health and lifestyle beyond diet... Read More
Minerals are essential nutrients that serve the body in many... Read More
"But I eat healthy," you might say. That may be... Read More
It would seem that everyone is looking to squeeze the... Read More
The benefits of whey protein are so numerous and apply... Read More
Did you know that there are free radical biochemical "terrorists"... Read More
If you think that smoking is a harmless little hobby... Read More
The last year hasn't been a good one for vitamin... Read More
In a 2002 study, a group of researchers used oral... Read More
Body Building Supplement ? what is it?The term "body building... Read More
In a perfect world, your children would eat a balanced... Read More
Selenium is a type of trace mineral which supports healthy... Read More
In September 2004 Orange County, California published an article "OC... Read More
Many of you are probably aware that The American Medical... Read More
Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body... Read More
Recently the news carried the story that a researcher had... Read More
L-tyrosine is a non-essential amino acid that plays a role... Read More
Vitamins seem to be so good for everything. The newly... Read More
home cleaning services Des Plaines ..Will common sense ever prevail? We've all seen stories on... Read More
What's the best muscle building supplement available today? You might... Read More
If you think that smoking is a harmless little hobby... Read More
Myocardial infarction is a technical term used to describe an... Read More
The initial success of penicillin generated an assumption which has... Read More
Hyaluronic acid is available in a variety of products ranging... Read More
Many years ago I became convinced of the need to... Read More
Iron supplement - why iron?Why people need to use iron... Read More
Tribulus terrestris is a herb that comes from a plant... Read More
Three Important Nutrients - Vitamin E, Selenium, and Sodium and... Read More
Iron is a mineral that is essential to the health... Read More
Vitamin E is an absolutely vital nutrient in your body,... Read More
Ever wondered whether amino acid supplements really work? We reveal... Read More
In a 2002 study, a group of researchers used oral... Read More
I often hear people say that they have smoked for... Read More
Haven't heard of fucose? Think it's the latest teen dance... Read More
Calcium Supplement ? why calcium.Why is calcium supplement so important?... Read More
As much as we would like to deny it, the... Read More
Liquid vitaminsHardly does a day pass without the liquid vitamins... Read More
Throughout my childhood I was aware of the importance of... Read More
Since coral calcium is one of he hottest products on... Read More
The multi-vitamin market is rich with choice. It's also very... Read More
Vitamin E is a family of eight related molecules known... Read More
While HA has dramatically increased in popularity and use within... Read More
The muscles of the body actually depend heavily on the... Read More
Nutritional Supplements |