When you injure the small blood vessels beneath your skin, your body uses several vitamins to heal your injury. For this process to happen effectively, you have to supply your body with these vitamins through your diet, or you will not be able to heal your bruise very quickly.
What is a Skin Bruise?
The dark purple color that makes up your bruise is actually blood trapped beneath your skin. A bruise is created when a direct trauma breaks open your blood vessels in your skin, but your skin is not broken. When this injury happens, your body quickly uses several vitamins that stop the bleeding and start healing your injury. Some vitamins that are key in this process include vitamins K, A, C, E and niacin.
Vitamins and Bruises
Vitamins are organic compounds found in food that your body uses to make tissues and cells and they power the thousands of chemical reactions that make vital functions possible. When you are bruised, your body uses these vitamins in the chemical reactions that stop the bleeding and rebuild your damaged cells. For example, once you sustain your injury, vitamin K is used to make proteins that clot your blood and stop the bleeding. Vitamin E is also present, because it is critical in allowing your body to use vitamin K. Vitamin E also makes new red blood cells. Vitamin C promotes wound healing and it helps your body create tissue and collagen. Vitamin A and niacin are used in supporting the health of your skin and soft tissues. The chemical reactions that makes these processes possible are highly complex and involve all of the 13 essential vitamins to be performed. Therefore you also need vitamin D, thiamine, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, biotin, vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12 and folate. These vitamins supply your cells with energy, support immune system function and run your nervous system.
Sources of These Vitamins
Vitamins are naturally found in the foods that you eat. The best sources of vitamins include natural fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, eggs, lean meats, whole grains and dairy products. If you consume these foods each day you should be able to get the recommended dietary allowance or RDA. This is the amount that is needed by your body each day, to support the process of wound healing and other important body functions. If you do not get the RDA each day, you could develop deficiency symptoms that could include, delayed wound healing and problems clotting your blood, which could lead to a skin bruise that lasts for a long period of time.
Considerations
Simply put, vitamins are very important to your health and are involved in almost all of your body's physiological processes. When you injure yourself, all of the essential vitamins will contribute to the healing process. If you are concerned that you may not be getting the RDA of each of these important nutrients, consider a daily multivitamin in addition to eating a healthy and balanced diet. If you are on any medications such as warfarin or other anticoagulants, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before you add any vitamins to your diet to ensure that no complications arise.
