Your body needs 13 vitamins that are all essential and necessary for normal functioning. Severe vitamin deficiency can lead to several health conditions including scurvy, pellagra, blindness, anemia and osteomalacia, depending on the vitamin you are deficient in. However, even mild vitamin deficiency can cause symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, dry skin, bleeding of the gums, dermatitis, diarrhea and irritation. Ensure you get all 13 vitamins on a daily basis to prevent deficiency.
Step 1
Write down the amount of all food items you eat on a daily basis. Weigh foods, such as fruits, vegetables and meats, or use a measuring cup for foods such as chopped vegetables, rice, juices and sauces. Count the number of food items such as eggs, slices of bread, whole vegetables and fruits. For example, if you eat one apple, count it as one apple. If you use chopped apple in a salad, measure the quantity with a measuring cup.
Step 2
Check the food labels to find out the vitamin content. For example, if one serving has 25 percent of the daily vitamin C value and you enjoyed three servings, you consumed 75 percent of your vitamin C intake from that food item. If you ate other foods that contained 10 and 20 percent of vitamin C, for example, add all these together to sum up your total vitamin C intake. In this case your vitamin C intake would be 105 percent.
Step 3
Check the vitamin content of food items that do not have a label, such as fresh vegetables, using the nutrient data search engine hosted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Search each food by count, weight or volume. The database will report the amount of all vitamins the food contained.
Step 4
Add up the amount of individual vitamins in all the foods you eat in one day, to get your total vitamin intake.
Step 5
Compare the amount of vitamins you consumed to the recommended dietary allowances, to figure out if you are getting enough vitamins to avoid deficiency.
Tips and Warnings
- Your body produces vitamin D as a response to sunlight. In addition, your intestinal bacteria produce some vitamin K, pantothenic acid and biotin.
Things You'll Need
- Pen
- Paper
- Calculator
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