Chronic vitamin deficiency is caused by the long-term absence of specific vitamins in your diet. You need 13 different essential vitamins for normal bodily functions. Vitamins A, C and E are most commonly lacking in the average diet, notes FamilyDoctor.org. Your risk of deficiency for any vitamin is dependent on your dietary habits and health status.
Water-soluble and Fat-soluble Vitamins
Vitamins are either water-soluble or fat-soluble. Water-soluble vitamins process through your body quickly; what your body does not use is eliminated through urine. Fat-soluble vitamins absorb slowly in your body and are stored in the liver or fatty tissue. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble, while the B vitamins and vitamin C are water-soluble. Although you may not need to consume fat-soluble vitamins daily since they store in your body longer, the Institute of Medicine set a standard daily recommended dietary allowance, or RDA, and adequate intakes, or AI, as a guideline to help you prevent deficiency.
Vitamins A, C and E
Vitamins A, C and E are antioxidant vitamins, which means they help protect your organs from free radical damage. Vitamin A is necessary for visual health and bone growth. Vitamin C helps build collagen for tendons, blood vessels and ligaments. Vitamin E protects your skin and cells. All three vitamins keep your immune system healthy.
Vitamin A deficiency results in impaired vision, inflammation of the eyes and immune system distress. Adults need 700 to 900 micrograms of vitamin A daily to prevent deficiency. Vitamin C deficiency increases your risk of anemia, a low red blood cell count, or scurvy, collagen loss resulting in tissue malformation, spotty skin and bleeding gums. Adults need 75 to 90 mg of vitamin C daily. Vitamin E deficiency can complicate pregnancy resulting in low birth weight infants or cause coordination problems and muscle weakness in adults. You need 15 mg of vitamin E daily.
Vitamins D and K
Vitamin D helps your body properly absorb calcium for strong bones and teeth. Vitamin K is a coagulant, which is necessary to help your blood clot. Vitamin D can be difficult to get from your diet because it does not naturally occur in many foods. Vitamin D, however, is synthesized by your skin when you are exposed to direct sunlight. This is the easiest means for getting vitamin D but comes with the risk of skin cancer if you are overexposed to the sun -- 5 to 10 minutes will do the trick, though, according to Colorado State University Extension. Some dairy products like milk have added vitamin D so you can get your daily intake. Deficiency of vitamin D leads to rickets, or bone softening and osteomalacia, bone weakness. You need 15 to 20 micrograms of vitamin D daily. Excessive bleeding is the result of vitamin K deficiency. The adequate intake for vitamin K is 90 to 120 micrograms per day.
B Vitamins
Deficiencies of significance in the B-group of vitamins include thiamine or niacin if you are a chronic alcohol drinker and vitamin B-12 if you are elderly. Thiamine and niacin are important for protecting your nervous system and brain. Malnourishment due to alcoholism or poor diet is associated with thiamine and niacin deficiency, which leads to memory impairments, fatigue, depression and disorientation. Beriberi and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome are two serious conditions that result from thiamine deficiency. Pellagra is a deficiency disease caused by a chronic lack of niacin. Vitamin B-12 is involved in food metabolism and contributes to various functions of your nervous system and brain. As you age, your body becomes less able to absorb vitamin B-12, which increases your risk of deficiency. The daily recommended dose in adults for thiamine is 1.1 to 1.2 mg, niacin is recommended at 14 to 16 mg and vitamin B-12 is 2.4 micrograms.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Vitamin Deficiency Anemia; Mayo Clinic Staff; March 4, 2011
- Colorado State University: Fat-Soluble Vitamins; J. Anderson and L. Young; August 2008
- Linus Pauling Institute: Vitamins
- Office of Dietary Supplements; Vitamin and Mineral Fact Sheets
- FamilyDoctor.org: Dietary Supplements; What You Need to Know
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