Essential Vitamins For Women
Posted on April 17, 2008
- Get Plenty Of Vitamin A To See The Light
Vitamin A helps the body develop and maintain healthy teeth, bones, and skin, but it is also especially important for eye health, especially for maintaining night vision. Vitamin A is also known as retinol because it helps develop the pigments in the retina of the eye, and retinol has been a popular component of many skin care products in recent years.
Foods rich in vitamin A include whole milk, meat, (especially animal liver), cheese, eggs and fish oils. If you buy skim or lowfat milk, read the label to be sure that it has been fortified with vitamin A. Many vitamin A-rich foods are high in fat and cholesterol, so consume them in moderation, and eat plenty of foods rich in beta-carotene, which can turn into a form of vitamin A once it is absorbed by the body. Good sources of beta-carotene include yellow and orange fruits and veggies including carrots, squash, and cantaloupe, as well as spinach, broccoli, and most dark green leafy vegetables. The more intense the color of the food, the higher the beta-carotene/vitamin A content will be.
- Get Vitamin-Rich Food Fast With Chefs Diet™ Delivery
It’s hard to think about healthy eating when you have a busy life and little time for shopping or cooking. Too often, busy people end up grabbing a morning donut or afternoon candy bar, followed by dinner from a local take-out place on the way home. This eating strategy falls short on vitamins. To be sure you get your daily vitamins from healthy foods, consider a home meal delivery plan such as Chefs Diet™ Delivery, which does the work of planning healthy meals with a variety of vitamins and controlled portion sizes so you won’t overeat. You can maintain your weight and feel great with home-delivered meals, and you don’t need to spend extra time cooking or grocery shopping. Plus, the variety and flavor of the healthy meals won’t leave you feeling deprived.
- Signs Of Vitamin Deficiency
If you generally follow a healthy eating plan, you probably are not vitamin deficient. But people who follow fad diets or severely limit their food intake can become deficient.
Signs of vitamin deficiency vary with the type of vitamin, but changes in your skin, hair, or nails can indicate a vitamin deficiency.
Many generic symptoms, such as weakness or vomiting, can also be symptoms of a vitamin deficiency. If you are ill, see your doctor, and be sure to mention any recent changes in your diet or unusual dietary patterns so the doctor can assess the likelihood of a vitamin deficiency.
Inadequate intake of certain vitamins can contribute to specific problems. For example, if you are deficient in vitamin A, you may be more vulnerable to infections and to vision problems. Not enough vitamin C? You are more vulnerable to infections. If you don’t get enough vitamin D, you may be increasing your risk for osteoporosis, especially if you are a woman. Be sure that you are getting enough vitamins, and not only will it show through in your physical appearance but it will make you feel healthier and you will have more energy.
- Vitamin B12: Continuous Refueling Needed
The body cannot store vitamin B12; when you eat foods containing B12, your body uses what it needs and eliminates the rest through urine. Consequently, you need to eat foods containing vitamin B12 each day. Vitamin B12 plays a key role in the body’s metabolism, which includes the ability to perform basic functions such as breathing, circulation, and maintenance of a core body temperature on an ongoing basis. Good sources of vitamin B12 include eggs, meat, shellfish, poultry, milk and milk products.
If you follow a strict vegetarian or vegan diet and don’t consume any eggs or milk products, you may need vitamin B12 supplements because the best food sources for B12 are animal products. Although some non-animal products contain B12, the amounts in these products are not enough to meet the body’s needs. If you don’t get enough B12 in your body, you can develop anemia or you may experience weakness, loss of balance or tingling in the arms and legs.
Also, if you have had surgery on parts of the stomach or small intestine, it is more difficult for you to absorb vitamin B12 and you may need to take a supplement as well.
- Vitamin B2: Riboflavin Helps Get Your Motor Running
Vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin, is not stored in the body, so it’s important to eat foods rich in riboflavin each day. Vitamin B2 works in conjunction with other B vitamins to help the body release the energy it stores as carbohydrates. If you’re participating in sports, or even if you are just moderately active, the body’s ability to process carbohydrates is what gives you energy.
Most bread and cereal products in the
U.S. are fortified with riboflavin and deficiency is rare. Also, lean meats, nuts, eggs, and dairy products are high in riboflavin. Riboflavin is destroyed when it is exposed to light, so if you keep nuts around for a healthy snack, don’t store them in clear glass jars where they can be exposed to light. Keep them in the cabinet, or in a refrigerator or freezer (they will actually stay fresher in the fridge or freezer). - Vitamin B9: More Than A “Preconceived” Notion
Vitamin B9 is also known as folate or folic acid, and it helps the body absorb and create new proteins. Folate helps red blood cells produce DNA, which is why it is especially important that women who are planning to become pregnant consume enough of it. Research has shown that consuming at least 400 micrograms of folic acid daily reduces the risk of some types of birth defects related to neural tube problems, such as spina bifida. Prenatal vitamins are an exception to the general rule that most people can get adequate vitamins from food sources alone. If you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, talk to your doctor to make sure you are getting enough folate.
Great folate food sources include beans and legumes, whole grains, dark green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, citrus fruits, poultry, pork, shellfish, and liver.
Insufficient folate consumption can contribute to ulcers and can cause diarrhea in pregnant or non-pregnant individuals.
- Vitamin C: The Handyman Vitamin
In addition to its antioxidant properties, vitamin C does the bulk of the repair work on the body. Vitamin C is necessary to help the body make collagen, a protein that is a component of skin, scar tissue, ligaments, tendons and blood vessels. Vitamin C also helps the body perform maintenance and repair on bones, teeth, and cartilage, and it helps wounds heal.
Vitamin C is water-soluble, so it is not stored in the body and you need to consume it every day. Eating foods rich in vitamin C is the most efficient way to get enough of this important vitamin. Citrus fruits are among the foods with the highest amounts of vitamin C, but if you opt for fruit juice, be mindful of the high sugar content of many fruit juices and look for those that are 100 percent juices.
Other fruits high in vitamin C include strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and pineapple. Although many people associate vitamin C with fruit, there’s also plenty of it to be found in green peppers, tomatoes and brussels sprouts.
If you don’t eat enough foods rich in vitamin C, you may be less able to fight off infections and colds. You may experience dry, brittle hair and skin, as well as nosebleeds, bleeding gums and poor quality tooth enamel.
- Vitamin D: The Bone Builder
Vitamin D is essential to helping the body absorb calcium. Inadequate vitamin D can contribute to the development of osteoporosis.
The role of sun exposure and vitamin D in the body remains somewhat controversial, but studies have shown that 10-15 minutes of sun exposure three times a week is enough for the body to produce the vitamin D that it needs to promote calcium absorption.
But just because you go out in the sun doesn’t mean you shouldn’t include vitamin D-rich foods in your diet. Cheese and butter are high in vitamin D, and all milk sold in grocery stores in the U.S. has been fortified with vitamin D. Fortified breakfast cereals are great sources of vitamin D, as are fish and oysters. But you can have too much of a good thing—over-consumption of vitamin D can cause kidney stones. In general, adults age 50 years and older need more vitamin D than younger people to maintain adequate calcium, as their bones become more brittle.
- Vitamin K: The Clotting Vitamin
Without vitamin K, your blood wouldn’t clot when you cut yourself. Because vitamin K is fat-soluble, it can be stored in the body over time and vitamin K deficiency is rare. But if you are taking a blood-thinning medication (such as warfarin), talk to your doctor about which and how much vitamin K-containing foods you should eat because vitamin K can affect how well the blood-thinners work.
For most healthy people, a balanced diet provides adequate vitamin K. Foods that are especially good sources of vitamin K include cabbage, cauliflower, spinach and other green leafy veggies, cereals and soybeans.
In addition, the bacteria that line the gastrointestinal tract manufacture vitamin K in the body, and one of the few ways to become vitamin K-deficient is if you have been taking antibiotics for an extended period of time. If you have been on antibiotics and notice that you are bruising and bleeding more easily, talk to your doctor because you may be slightly deficient in vitamin K.
- Vitamin Supplements Can’t Beat The Real Thing
Just as tanning in a salon, acrylic nails, and fake Louis Vuitton purses aren’t as good as the real thing, when it comes to healthy eating, vitamin supplements can’t and shouldn’t replace real foods.. Although many vitamin supplements won’t do you any harm, remember that these products are not regulated and the amount of vitamins in them may vary. Also, research has not supported any significant health benefits associated with taking vitamin supplements. Also, vitamin information can be misleading. Beware of products billing themselves as multivitamins, and maintain a healthy skepticism of pills that make claims that seem too good to be true; they probably are. And some supplements can interact with prescription medications, so check with your doctor about potential interactions before taking vitamin supplements.
But there are some conditions in which a vitamin supplement is needed. For example, women who are planning to become pregnant should take folic acid (vitamin B9) supplements to ensure an adequate amount of folate, which is important for healthy fetal development. Also, people with specific medical problems that hinder their ability to absorb enough vitamins from foods may need supplements. Ask your doctor about which, if any supplements, you might need if you have a specific medical condition.
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One Response to “Essential Vitamins For Women”
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Thanks so much for this info on vitamins. I eat a limited diet to stay thin and I know I don’t get the nutrients I need.
I found this article that talks about specific vitamins/minerals needed by women and I’m following those recommendations. Do the rest of you have a regimen that you’ve found works for you?