Vitamins and minerals are key nutrients that our bodies need to survive. These vital nutrients are supplied by our diet to help our body function properly. If any one nutrient is deficient or consumed in extreme excess it can have tremendous negative effects on your health and performance.
Taking a multi-vitamin supplement can help make sure that you do not become deficient, but most of your vitamins and minerals should come from food.
Vitamins and minerals help your body to function properly. If anyone nutrient is deficient it can have tremendous negative effects on your health and performance.
Also, if any nutrient is consumed in excess it can be harmful and even deadly.
To avoid becoming deficient or even over consuming any one nutrient, consume a variety of foods including:
- Fruits and Vegetables
- Meats and Fish
- Dairy
- Nuts and Seeds
- Beans and Legumes
Each category of food listed above provides vital nutrients our bodies need to survive. If eating a variety of foods is not permitted due to your diet, or you have some food allergies preventing certain food groups, you will need to take a multivitamin or supplement to get these vital nutrients.
To make it simpler, just eat a variety of natural foods, regularly. Even if you choose just one item from each group to include in your diet, it can make a big difference.
Add a handful of spinach to your breakfast eggs, have some fish once a week, eat more cheese, snack on some nuts and join in a chili eating contest! Find what works for you and stick to it, for your health!
Some nutrients are more important than others for men and women. For example, women need a lot more calcium, vitamin D and iron, to account for blood loss and because they lose the ability to absorb calcium after age 30. It is vital for women to get a lot of these key nutrients during puberty and especially as they age. Men, on the other hand, need more magnesium and zinc to help with testosterone production throughout their lives. Otherwise, men can take testosterone booster supplements to help if they aren’t getting enough minerals through food.
Though it is important to get all of our vital nutrients in, more does not mean better. If you take too much of any one nutrient it can have harmful, and even deadly effects.
Though it is difficult, if you eat too much of one thing or add in a lot of supplements, you can start to feel negative symptoms. So be conscious of how you feel on a normal basis, and if anything starts to change, you may want to look at your diet.
When choosing a multivitamin look for one that supplies only about 50% or less of the daily value for each nutrient. This will ensure that you are not greatly deficient in any nutrient and leaves room for an abundance of nutrients to come from food, as they should.
Note: Generally men should have little to no iron in their multivitamin but women need to have some.
Now ask yourself…do you have an incomplete diet that lacks a variety of foods? Do you often feel fatigued, weak or have any skin or eye discoloration? If so, you may need to rethink your diet and start making changes to improve your health and well being.
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