Vitamin C has to be the most well-known vitamin these days. No wonder, because the body needs vitamin C for more than 300 functions. In fact, vitamin C has been shown to help protect against heart disease, cancer, and other serious illnesses. Without vitamin C, the body would not be able to heal itself. This is because vitamin C is vital for collagen formation. Whenever a person has a cut or injury, it is collagen that helps repair the damage, and without enough vitamin C, this would be nearly impossible. Collagen has many functions in the body, including keeping organs in place, and it wouldn't be possible without enough vitamin C.
Vitamin D is the only vitamin that cannot be obtained from the food we eat. Instead, vitamin D is actually obtained from sunlight on the skin. There has been a lot of information in the media about the dangers of excessive sun exposure, but to get the recommended daily dose of vitamin D, it is essential that the skin is exposed to sunlight. In fact, the amount of time a person needs to spend in the sun to get enough vitamin D is extremely small, just a few minutes a day and will not have any adverse effects on the amount of ultraviolet light.
Vitamin C is also an antioxidant for the body and helps better the absorption of other vitamins and minerals. Folic acid and iron, for example, need vitamin C to maximize their usefulness. The more vitamin C the body has, the better it defends itself against colds and other common illnesses, and although vitamin C does not prevent a person from contracting a virus, it does help speed up the recovery process.
The most important function of vitamin D is to help control how much calcium is absorbed from food. Most calcium is used to build strong teeth and bones, but it is also needed to send messages along nerves and help muscles such as the heart contract. It is vitamin D that ensures that there is always enough calcium in the blood to perform these tasks. Other functions that require vitamin D are related to the immune system, and it is also thought to help reduce the risk of cancer, especially colon cancer.
Vitamin C is in almost every fruit and vegetable, but some are much higher in vitamin C than others. Cranberries and watermelons are high in vitamin C. In fact, tropical fruits have the highest amount of vitamin C of any fruit. Hot peppers are among the richest sources of vitamin C when it comes to vegetables. The hotter the pepper, the higher its vitamin C content. Unfortunately, vitamin C is water-soluble, so many vegetables lose their effectiveness as a vitamin C provider if they are cooked for a long time. Steaming or quickly frying vegetables will ensure that more of their vitamin C content is preserved. The recommended daily amount of vitamin C can easily be obtained from five servings of fruit and vegetables per day if they are eaten raw or quickly cooked.
The variant of vitamin D that forms under the skin is known as vitamin D3 or cholecalciferol. This vitamin D is created when ultraviolet radiation in sunlight reacts with a type of cholesterol naturally found under the skin. D3 is converted in the liver to a more active form of vitamin D and diverted to where it is most needed. Some vitamin D remains in the liver and kidneys to help reabsorb calcium from the blood. The rest of the vitamin D is dispersed to the bones to help them retain calcium and the intestines to help absorb calcium from food.
Vitamin C supplements are very useful to ensure that people get enough vitamin C. However, with a balanced diet, the amount of vitamin C that the body receives is probably sufficient. However, if a person begins to feel tired or lethargic, a vitamin C supplement will help. There is no danger of having too much vitamin C, as the body will simply eliminate the excess.
Although most vitamin D is produced by exposure of the skin to sunlight, there are some foods that contain certain vitamins naturally. This form of vitamin D is known as vitamin D2. It is used in the same way as another vitamin D's and is the type used to make most vitamin D supplements.
You must be logged in to post a comment.