Minerals & Vitamins

Minerals and vitamins are essential for health, but taking supplements is not the key to longevity and disease prevention. Supplements are meant to supplement the diet, not to serve as substitutes for healthy foods, plenty of exercise and other good lifestyle choices. Use mineral and vitamin supplements under the supervision of a qualified health care professional.

Minerals

Minerals are inorganic elements necessary in minuscule amounts for human health. They help regulate human biochemical processes in the body. There are two categories of minerals: the macrominerals, needed in amounts of 100/mg per day or more, and the trace elements, needed in lesser amounts. Both types are equally necessary for human health. According to the British Nutrition Foundation, a varied diet is generally adequate to supply the minerals you need.

Vitamins

Vitamins are organic substances that the body requires in tiny amounts. Most vitamins cannot be synthesized in the body. The two exceptions are vitamin D, which the body can produce upon sun exposure, and vitamin B3, which can be synthesized in the body from tryptophan, an amino acid. Serious and even life-threatening vitamin deficiency diseases can develop when vitamin intake is inadequate. Serious vitamin deficiencies are rare in the industrialized world. Eating a healthy, varied diet based on whole grains, vegetables, fruits, lean proteins, healthy oils and nonfat milk products is better than taking vitamin supplements, because foods contain many bioactive compounds that cannot be duplicated in a pill.

Megadoses of Minerals and Vitamins

Megavitamin and megamineral therapy refers to the practice of taking many times the daily recommended intake of vitamins and minerals. Though some advocates claim that consumption of large amounts of vitamins and minerals is beneficial for diseases from cancer to schizophrenia, according to a 2007 article in the Johns Hopkins Nutrition and Weight Control Newsletter, taking megadoses of vitamins and minerals is not only unnecessary but dangerous. Too much vitamin D, for example, can lead to gastrointestinal illnesses and weight loss, while too much iron can cause diabetes, liver disease, heart disease and impotence in people with hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder that many do not realize they have.

Vitamin Deficiencies

Certain groups of people may be at risk for mineral and vitamin deficiencies. In the industrialized world where many foods are fortified with vitamins and minerals, serious disease-causing deficiencies are rare. Still, adolescent females, women of childbearing age and people who do not eat meat can be at risk for iron deficiencies, and many women do not get enough calcium for optimal bone health. Additionally, people who do not spend much time outdoors may not get enough vitamin D. The Harvard School of Public Health recommends that people who do not always eat right take a multivitamin/multimineral plus an extra vitamin D pill to provide safe nutritional insurance.