Vitamins and Minerals Guide to Daily Intake and Requirements
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet are crucial to our well-being. Our body requires certain nutrients in different proportions to keep us in the best health. Minerals and vitamins play vital roles in ensuring proper functions.
A diet containing the necessary vitamins and minerals should suffice most of your daily needs. However, if you have dietary restrictions or health conditions, you may need to take health supplements to make up for the shortfall of vitamins and minerals.
But between your diet and additional health supplements, how do you know if you're taking the necessary amount of vitamins and minerals, and what happens in case of excessive intake? We will discuss all there is to know about taking the right amount of nutrients in the space below.
What are the Useful Functions of Vitamins And Minerals?
There are 13 essential vitamins, eight of which are part of the B-group vitamins; some are fat-soluble, while others are water-soluble. Nutrition minerals and vitamins are important in some metabolic functions and produce energy from fat, protein, and carbohydrates. Here are some of the essential vitamins:
Vitamin A is essential for a stronger immune system, helps with better vision, supports reproduction, and keeps skin healthy.
Vitamin C is essential for strengthening the skin, blood vessels, and bone, as well as for collagen production and antioxidant activity. It is also needed for lymphocytes and neurotransmitters.
Vitamin D is critical for bone health, immune function, and mood regulation. Deficiency can lead to a decline in bone density in adults.
Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant, protecting cells from damage. It also helps improve blood flow to the heart and lowers blood cholesterol.
Vitamin K is essential for blood clotting to prevent excessive bleeding and is also part of the daily vitamin requirement to maintain healthy bone health.
B Vitamins: These vitamins are essential for energy production, metabolism, and nerve function.
When Should You Take Vitamin Supplements?
Nearly half of the American population takes one or more dietary supplements. Your doctor may advise you to take certain foods rich in the vitamins you are deficient in. If that's not possible, you should start taking daily supplements. Ensure you check the labeling to determine how much you should take per day.
Labeling On Vitamin and Mineral Supplement
Supplements are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as foods, not as drugs. In addition to your doctor's advice, you must remember the scientifically recommended limits on each vitamin and mineral. Here are the terms you must know:
Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA): This is the recommended daily nutritional intake that suffices the needs of a healthy individual.
Percent Daily Value (%DV): This is present on food packaging; in most cases, DV is the same as RDA. %DV shows each vitamin provided with a single serving of the supplement.
Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL): The UL is the maximum safe amount of a supplement a person can consume without any adverse effects.
Harmful Effects of Overconsumption of Vitamins and Minerals
Before consuming vitamins and minerals daily, it's advised to learn about their potential benefits and risks. Overconsumption can cause mild to severe symptoms and even hospitalization.
Consuming more than the Tolerable Upper Intake Level of vitamins and minerals can cause organ damage and even lead to death. For instance, iron overdose causes vomiting and diarrhea and excess of calcium may result in irregular heartbeat and impair kidney functioning.
What are the Vitamins To Take Daily?
Here is your guide to the most commonly needed nutrition minerals, and vitamins, and their RDA and upper limit.
Vitamin A
RDA - 700 micrograms for Women, 900 micrograms for Men. The upper limit is 3,000 micrograms.
Vitamin B1
RDA - 1.1 milligrams for Women, 1.2 milligrams for Men. Upper limit is not known.
Vitamin B2
RDA - 1.1 milligrams for Women, 1.3 milligrams for Men. Upper limit is not known.
Vitamin B6
RDA: Ages 19-50 1.3 milligrams for Women, Ages 19-50 1.3 milligrams for Men. The upper limit is 100 milligrams.
Biotin (vitamin B7)
RDA - 30 milligrams for Women and Men. Upper limit is not known.
Calcium
RDA - 1,300 milligrams
Chloride
RDA - 2,300 milligrams
Magnesium
RDA - 420 milligrams
Manganese
RDA - 2.3 milligrams
Deciding the Right Amount of Nutrients
Since the FDA doesn't regulate supplements, it's best to follow the doctor's advice before starting or discontinuing a health supplement. Along with your current diet and supplements, a supplement change may have less than the desired effect or even some adverse effect on your health. If done right, you're sure to get the most out of your intake of vitamins and minerals.