Vitamin A is the name of a group of fat-soluble antioxidant compounds. Two forms of the vitamin are available in the human diet: Retinoids, which are found in animal products and can be directly used by the body, and carotenoids (of which beta-carotene is the most important), which are found in plant foods and need to be converted into retinol by the body after the food is ingested. What Vitamin A Does for Us Maintains…
Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin that is found in many fruits and vegetables. Since our bodies don’t store it (excess amounts of the vitamin exit the body through our urine), we need to constantly supply our bodes with it in order to remain healthy. While most people understand that vitamin C plays an important role in maintaining skin health, it actually contains a large number of equally important roles in the…
Zinc is an essential trace mineral that is found in many high-protein foods. It is the second most common mineral found in our bodies after iron, and is present in several systems and biological reactions. Despite being an essential component of our genetic material, however, we only require small amounts of zinc to function properly. Zinc is a classic example of an element that everyone knows is important, but who don’t really understand its precise…
Copper is an essential trace element that is widely distributed in nature. Though the tissues of our bodies contain it in trace amounts, with our brains and livers containing the most, we all need to obtain our copper from food-based sources to function properly. Fortunately, our bodies don’t need much copper to function properly – which is just as well, since even the most mineral-rich foods contain only small amounts of it. What Copper Does…
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and one of the most important vitamins for our overall health. Though five forms of it are known to science (vitamins D1, D2, D3, D4, and D5), the two forms that matter most to us are D2 (ergocalciferol, a synthetic form made by irradiating fungus and plant matter) and D3 (cholecalciferol, a natural form created in our bodies from sunlight exposure). Aside from being more natural, vitamin D3 is…
