Do you remember the cumbersome vitamin nutrition charts we all had to mug up in our school life for the biology exams? Well, throwing them completely out of the memory wasn’t something too cool, because vitamin deficiency can cause some serious damage to the body and you should take care while you still have time!
Let’s revise some important points about vitamins, shall we?
- Vitamins are essential nutrient compounds that our body needs in small quantities to ensure its proper wellbeing.
- Vitamins are naturally found in fruits, vegetables and sunlight.
- Vitamins are of several types (A, B, C, D, E, K) and each consists of different nutritional value.
- Vitamin supplements aren’t necessary unless prescribed by doctors.
- If the body doesn’t get the required vitamins, it starts severely malfunctioning.
The various vitamins and their deficiency diseases are mentioned below along with their sources –
- Vitamin A– Associated with the wellbeing of your eyes, its deficiency can majorly cause night-blindness. The deficiency can also lead to growth-retardation, sleeplessness, fatigue, depression, nerve and skin disorders, etc.
Found in – Fish, milk, liver, orange, ripe yellow fruits, leafy vegetables, carrots and pumpkin. - Vitamin B– Vitamin B is of 8 types and each has their separate functions, therefore different deficiency diseases. Some of them are as follows :
- Vitamin B1– Balances the nervous system and its deficiency can cause beri-beri and many other nervous disorders.
Found in – Cereals, vegetables, potatoes, liver, eggs and pork. - Vitamin B3– Its deficiency affects the skin and nervous system, causing ailments like pellagra and neurasthenia. Vitamins B5 and B7 are also associated with the functioning of skin and nervous system.
Found in – Mushrooms, fish, meat, vegetables, cereals, nuts, beans and green vegetables. - Vitamin B6, B9 and B12– Associated with the proper functioning of blood and nervous system. Their deficiency causes severely damaging
Found in – Leafy vegetables, eggs, meat, fish, tree nuts and cereals. - Vitamin C- Also known as the Ascorbic acid, it ensures wellbeing of the gums, heart, skin, etc. Its deficiency is mainly known to cause
Found in – Citrus fruits like orange, lemon, lime, strawberries, grapefruit and also green vegetables like Brussels sprouts, broccoli, etc. - Vitamin D– It keeps your bones strong and its deficiency affects the bones with rickets, osteomalacia among many other alarming diseases.
Found in – In addition to mushrooms and animal proteins, walking/jogging under the warmth of early morning sunlight helps regain Vitamin D. - Vitamin E– It concerns the proper functioning of the reproductive organs. Its deficiency, rather rare, causes sterility in males, miscarriage in female and haemolytic anemia in newborns.
Found in – Fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. - Vitamin K– it helps to keep the ideal health of blood and its deficiency, though common in newborns, is rather rare in adults, and causes excessive bleeding diathesis.
Found in – Green leafy vegetables, egg yolk, liver.
Since we all know prevention is better than cure, following a healthy balanced diet is the key to healthy living. Nutritional deficiencies can be eliminated with proper diet, regular exercises and a healthier approach towards lifestyle.
Credits to : Miss Chandrima
