Vitamins and minerals are nutrients that help your body stay healthy. Multivitamins and supplements often combine vitamins with minerals such as zinc to meet your nutritional needs in one pill. Zinc is often added to vitamins because it is important in the function of your immune system.
Zinc and Your Body
Zinc is a trace mineral that is used in virtually all of your body's cells. It is important in many different physiological functions, including cell division, cell growth, wound healing and the breakdown of carbohydrates. Oregon State University adds that zinc is used in growth and development, the immune response, neurological function and reproduction. A supplement that contains zinc is designed to supply your body with this essential mineral, to ensure optimal body function.
Zinc RDA
Because your body uses zinc for so many important functions, your supplement should include enough zinc to help you meet the recommended dietary allowance, or RDA. This is the minimum amount that is thought to provide optimal body function. The RDA for zinc is currently 8 mg for adult females and 11 mg for adult males. If you do not consume enough zinc each day, over time you can develop a zinc deficiency. The deficiency can lead to impaired immune function, hair loss, poor appetite, vision problems and problems with your sense of smell and taste.
Vitamins and Zinc
Zinc is commonly added to multivitamin and multimineral supplements. Oregon State University states that the average multivitamin and multimineral contains around 15 mg of zinc. These supplements will often contain the essential vitamins in addition to zinc. The essential vitamins include vitamins A, C, D, E, K and the B-complex vitamins thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12 and folate.
Considerations
According to Oregon State University, there are several forms of zinc used in supplements. They include zinc acetate, zinc gluconate, zinc picolinate and zinc sulfate. It states that zinc picolinate is often promoted as the most absorbable form, but there is not enough data to support this. The best way to get the RDA of zinc is to include foods such as beef, pork, lamb, chicken and fish in your diet. These high-protein foods are good sources of zinc.
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