Your body uses vitamins and minerals in almost every one of its natural processes. Without the proper intake of these valuable nutrients, your body struggles to fight off diseases and recover from injuries. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has a list of daily recommendations so you can be sure you are getting the nutrients you need.
About Vitamins
Your body needs a total of 13 vitamins: A, C, D, E, K and the B vitamins. Most of the time, you get the vitamins you need from your diet; however, according to the USDA, adult Americans often have a deficiency in vitamins A, C and E.
Vitamin A
According to the Institute of Medicine, the average adult male needs 900 mcg of vitamin A daily. The average adult female needs 700 mg, while a pregnant woman should aim for 770 mcg a day. A breastfeeding mother needs 1,300mg daily.
Vitamin C
A normal man needs 90 mg of vitamin C every day, while a normal woman needs 75 mg. Pregnant women need slightly more, at 85 mg a day, while breastfeeding women need 120 mg.
Vitamin E
The average adult needs 15 mg of vitamin E daily. The recommendation is the same for pregnant women, but breastfeeding mothers should aim for 19 mg a day.
Minerals
Minerals play a key part in many of your body's processes, especially in building strong bones and keeping your heart healthy. If you eat a balanced diet, you should have no problem getting the minerals -- calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, sulfur, iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, cobalt, fluoride and selenium -- that you need daily. However, the USDA reports that Americans are often deficient in calcium, potassium and magnesium.
Calcium
The average adult, regardless of age, gender and situation -- i.e., pregnancy and breastfeeding -- needs 800 mg of calcium a day. Teenagers need 1,100 mg a day due to their rapid growth.
Potassium
The average adult needs 4.7 g daily of potassium. This amount is the same for pregnant women; however, breastfeeding mothers need 5.1 g a day.
Magnesium
Normal adult males need 400 mg of magnesium a day until they reach age 30. After age 30, the average man needs 420 mg of magnesium. A normal adult woman needs 310 mg of magnesium until she reaches age 30. After age 30, she needs to increase her intake to 320 mg a day. Young women need 350 mg during pregnancy and 310 mg during breastfeeding. Women above age 30 need 360 mg daily during pregnancy and 320 mg a day during breastfeeding.
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