Getting more vitamins into your daily diet means better health. Vitamins are important for your immunity, cells, internal organs, tissues, brain, eyes, skin and digestion as well as supporting healthy functions throughout your body. Making some changes in your diet and moving toward healthier foods will increase the amount of vitamins you get each day, which will help your body fight illnesses and keep you looking and feeling healthy. Variety in your diet is the key to covering all your vitamin needs on a daily basis.
Step 1
Determine how much of each food group you should be eating each day. Incorporating fruits, vegetables, lean protein, low-fat dairy and whole grains will help you get adequate amounts of vitamins A, B, C, D, E and K. Your intake will differ depending on your age, activity level and size, so familiarize yourself with your daily needs so you can incorporate the foods that will help you do this.
Step 2
Increase the variety of foods you eat from each food group. The more variation there is in what you choose to eat, the more likely it is that you are covering all the vitamins that are important to your health. Eat plenty of healthy foods throughout each day so that you increase your intake of all the vitamins rather than just the ones contained in your favorite foods.
Step 3
Avoid processed foods, fried food, soda, candy and fast food. These are high in fat and calories but contain little to no vitamins. Eating these foods will fill you up, but they leave little room for foods that are high in vitamins. This can lead to deficiencies in vitamin levels and subsequent health concerns like weight gain, diabetes or heart disease, conditions that adequate vitamin intake can prevent.
Step 4
Take a supplement with your doctor's OK. If you feel that you are having trouble meeting your daily needs for vitamins, you can take an over-the-counter multivitamin as insurance. However, it is important to discuss this with your doctor before you begin to take supplements because some can interfere with prescription medication and some vitamins are toxic in high amounts. If you eat a lot of fortified foods, your doctor might advise against taking supplements to prevent an overdose. If you are a vegan, you may need a B vitamin supplement since it is one that is primarily found in meat and animal products.
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