Why Do We Need Vitamins and Minerals

Vitamins are complex organic molecules that are required to carry out the normal functions of our body. Minerals are the basic components of all matter and are essential in building the body cells. Therefore, minerals are called building blocks of the body. The body needs vitamins and minerals in order to grow and develop. Each vitamin and mineral has a specific role to play in the human body.

It is very important to first understand how our body works. Everyday our body manufactures 200 billion red body cells and every 120 days our blood supply is totally replaced. Every 1-3 months our skin regenerates and our bone structure is destroyed and rebuilt within 90 days. Thus, to carry out this major rebuilding of the body, minerals and vitamins are very essential. The answer to the question why do we need vitamins and minerals can be answered as follows:

Vitamin Benefits
Vitamins are divided into two types: fat soluble and water soluble. Fat soluble vitamins are stored in the fat tissues and liver. They can remain in the body up to 6 months. When the body requires these minerals, they are transported to the area of requirement within the body with help of special carriers. The fat soluble vitamins include vitamin A, D, E and K.

Water soluble vitamins are not stored in the body like the fat soluble ones. They travel in the blood stream and need to be replenished everyday. Water soluble vitamins include the vitamin B group and vitamin C.

Vitamins have a specific role to play in the natural wear and tear of the body. There are many vitamin benefits that have a major impact on our overall health. The various vitamin benefits are as follows:

Vitamin A Benefits: Vitamin A helps in keeping the skin and hair healthy. It also prevents blindness. It is a powerful antioxidant and keeps the immune system healthy. It is also essential for bone growth.

Vitamin B Benefits: Vitamin B is a large family of vitamins. The different members of this large family are vitamin B12, B1, B2, B3, B6, niacin, biotin, folic acid and pantothenic acid. Vitamin B is important for cell repair, digestion and production of energy. It is also essential for normal red blood cells production.

Vitamin C Benefits: Vitamin C helps in reduction of cholesterol levels and regulation of blood pressure. Iron is absorbed in the body with the help of vitamin C. Vitamin C is beneficial in healing wounds and it is very important for a healthy immune system. Vitamin C helps the body fight against any pathogenic infection or illness It also aids in collagen formation. Vitamin C is the most powerful antioxidant.

Vitamin D Benefits: Vitamin D is crucial for development and maintenance of healthy bones and prevention of osteoporosis. It is also important for strong and healthy teeth.

Vitamin E Benefits: Vitamin E is the most essential vitamin for the human body. Vitamin E is essential for growth of the body. It helps in maintaining healthy cells and tissues. It also promotes healthy functioning of eyes, liver and skin. It plays a major role in prevention of external damage to the lungs by air pollutants. It is also important in the production of red blood corpuscles. It prevents prostate cancer and heart disease. It plays a major role in development of the immune system. It protects DNA, fats, cell membranes and enzymes from damage. Vitamin E acts as an anti-blood clotting agent.

Vitamin K Benefits: Last but not the least, vitamin K helps in prevention of Alzheimer's disease in old people. It is very important in clotting blood in case of bleeding. It also helps in proper functioning of the kidney and bone calcification.

Mineral Benefits
Minerals are as important as vitamins in the development of our body. They are known as 'spark of life' as they have a multi-functional role in our body. They are found in cells, tissues, organs, in fact, the entire body. There are two types of minerals - essential minerals and trace elements.

Essential minerals include calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), phosphorous (Ph), potassium (K), sodium (Na) and sulfur (S). The trace elements are required in very minute quantity. They include boron (B), cobalt (Co), copper [C], chromium (Cr), fluoride (F), iodine (I), manganese (Mg), molybdenum (Mo), selenium (Se), silicon (Si) and zinc (Zn).

Calcium: Calcium helps in building strong bones and teeth. It is also essential for the nervous system and muscles.

Chromium: It is essential in increasing the effectiveness of insulin during metabolism. You should try to include foods containing chromium in your diet.

Copper: Copper along with vitamin C is needed for healing wounds. It also plays a role in formation of blood cells.

Iodine: It plays an important role in the prevention of Goiter. Iodine is required by the thyroid gland in order to carry out its metabolic functions effectively.

Iron: Iron is the most important component of blood. Iron acts as an oxygen carrier supplying it to the various parts of the body. It is also essential in the production of blood.

Magnesium: Magnesium acts as an intermediate for utilization of carbohydrates, fats and proteins in the body.

Manganese: Along with calcium, manganese is required for production of sex hormones and development of the skeletal system.

Molybdenum: Molybdenum is very important as it helps transporting iron from the liver into the body.

Potassium: Potassium is necessary for building a healthy nervous system, heart, muscle and kidneys.

Selenium: Selenium plays a role in maintaining the elasticity of the arteries and tissues.

Zinc: Zinc is required for proper healing of the wounds.

Minerals play an important role in catalyzing or activating an enzyme in the body. If there is deficiency of any mineral, it may lead to acute or chronic ailments. Decrease in potassium and magnesium may lead to heart attacks. Minerals help in prevention of osteoporosis, cancer, arthritis, goiter, gastrointestinal problems, periodontal disease and anemia.

Potassium, sodium, iron and calcium phosphates are essential in nerve formations. Minerals are needed for controlling body fluids inside and outside the cells. The help in converting the food into energy.

If even a single mineral is deficient in the body, the normal functioning of the body cells gets hampered. Proteins, carbohydrates, fats and vitamins are rendered useless if there are no minerals to catalyze the chemical molecules in the body. Thus, without the minerals body cannot function normally.

The above information proves that these essential compounds are an absolute necessity for building a healthy and ailment free body. Due to irregular eating habits and junk food diets, people, especially children are missing out on the essential vitamins and minerals necessary for growth and development. Thus, it is very important to maintain a healthy and balanced diet in order to obtain the maximum vitamins and minerals required by the body. There are many vitamin supplements available in the market to overcome the vitamin deficiency. But one should keep in mind that overdose of minerals or vitamins can prove to be toxic to our body. Therefore, before starting on any vitamin and mineral tablets consult a medical practitioner for advice. I hope this has solved your query 'why do we need vitamins and minerals?' So next time you are asked to eat your salad, don't squirm, it's packed with minerals and vitamins.