There are numerous essential vitamins your body needs to function properly. Here we discuss the essential vitamins your body needs to help you lead a happy and healthy lifestyle.
The Essential Vitamins Your Body Needs
Did you know our bodies need roughly 2000 different nutrients to function? Yep, it’s true. And the human body cannot make or store these nutrients. Today, I’m going to focus on the essential vitamins your body needs. Not only will you learn about these essential vitamins, but I’ve also included a list of high-quality food sources for each one!
Your body needs a variety of vitamins and minerals to stay healthy. Several vitamins and nutrients are considered “essential”. This means your body cannot produce them on its own, and you must make sure you get enough of them daily.
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Foods are more than just your daily source of energy. They’re filled with vitamins, small antioxidant chemicals that help maintain the body’s tissues and keep us well. Vitamin deficiency is a common condition affecting millions of Americans each year… That’s why it’s important to get the right amount of vitamins from foods.
Food like leafy vegetables and leafy green vegetables are a great source of vitamins and iron. These foods also contain other essential nutrients that are needed by the body to function correctly. There is more required than just eating them or taking vitamins for good health.
Let’s take a look at some of those essential vitamins, including what they do for your body and where you may be able to find them in the foods you eat.
Magnesium
What is magnesium, and why do we need it? Among the essential vitamins, it is one of the most common deficiencies in humans. And yet, it’s probably also the most under-appreciated (at least in the mainstream nutritional cross-hairs) of all nutrients. But this deficiency can lead to a variety of conditions. It can cause an irregular heartbeat, trigger asthma, or result in a migraine headache – to name a few problems.
Magnesium improves your health in numerous ways. While it is the fourth most abundant mineral in the human body, most people do not get enough from their daily diet. Magnesium is responsible for over 300 biochemical actions in the human body. It is required for producing, metabolizing, and utilizing energy (ATP). It also helps our nerves function properly and is needed for bones to form properly.
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Magnesium is the fourth most abundant human body element, right after oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen. It is an essential nutrient with several roles in our body. It helps regulating blood sugar levels, aiding in bone growth, and keeping the heart rhythm steady. Despite being so important, a lot of us are deficient in magnesium. This is thanks to the fact that we eat less whole foods than ever before and, in turn, have sub-optimal diets.
Magnesium deficiency is widespread in the United States and probably even throughout the world, especially in developing countries. Magnesium is an essential mineral and is required for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. Deficiency of this mineral can be caused by certain diseases that some people may develop, such as diabetes and chronic alcoholism.
Calcium
Calcium is an essential nutrient of the essential vitamins your body needs. The body needs it to develop and maintain strong bones and perform many other crucial functions. Calcium deficiency is the most common vitamin deficiency globally, causing stunted growth and tooth decay among people. Not only is calcium essential for strong, healthy bones, it also plays a role in regulating blood pressure and aiding in blood clotting. A lack of calcium can lead to osteoporosis, which causes brittle bones.
Calcium is an essential mineral that your body needs for a variety of bodily processes. The RDA (recommended dietary allowance) for calcium is 1000mg per day for people aged 14-18 years old. In women older than 19 and men more aged than 70, the RDA is 1200mg per day.
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Most of us know calcium is a vital mineral in just about every living cell, but the amounts and forms of calcium required for optimal health are probably a mystery to you. There are several forms of calcium supplements, some of which have been proven more useful by medical science, while others have not. Calcium citrate is easily absorbed, while other types of supplements such as calcium carbonate tend to give most people digestive irritation and discomfort.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is the town’s talk for its numerous health benefits, ranging from improved eyesight to protecting against heart diseases. The secret lies in the compound L-ascorbic acid, which initiates a series of chemical reactions that result in a new substance called a bioflavonoid.
When most people think of vitamin C, they think of citrus fruits. Although citrus fruits are a great source of Vitamin C, many other sources provide your body with Vitamin C.
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Vitamin C is an essential vitamin for your body to produce collagen, a protein that keeps skin firm and helps wounds heal quickly. The vitamin C deficiency can cause scurvy, which leads to bleeding gums and weakness in muscles.
Vitamin C is an essential vitamin to a healthy life. It helps your body fight off infections and heals wounds, but there are many other benefits of vitamin C. Vitamins are organic compounds that the body needs in small amounts.
Vitamin B-12
Modern-day life is pretty tough on our bodies. Our sedentary lifestyles and high-stress environments have left us more prone to Vitamin B-12 deficiency. This leads to an increase in a wide range of adverse health effects for our bodies, which can eventually lead to some chronic illnesses.
Vitamin B-12 is a complex vitamin that belongs to the b vitamin complex. Many people don’t get enough of it. While you might think it one of the best vitamins, there is the risk of overdoing it if you take supplements. So knowing how much B-12 to take is essential for your health.
Vitamin B-12 assists in red blood cell formation, cellular metabolism and helps keep both the nervous system and your DNA healthy. This is important because, as an antioxidant, vitamin B-12 can protect you from the damage a free radical might cause in the body.
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A good source of vitamin B-12 is fortifying nutritional yeast. It’s not that expensive and can be purchased on Amazon, but you may also find nutritional yeast at your local health food store. It’s essential to keep in mind that fortified dietary yeast brands vary on the milligrams of B-12 they offer. Nutritional yeast made by Red Star contains 50 percent of the daily value for vitamin B-12. Organic, fortified nutritional yeast contains 2.5 micrograms of vitamin B-12 per tablespoon. As with most nutrients, the recommended daily allowance is 2.4 micrograms per day for most adults over 19.
Vitamin B-12 is necessary for normal red blood cell formation and the synthesis of DNA during cell division. This vitamin can be found in animal products such as eggs, fish, poultry, milk, cheese, and yogurt. It can also be derived from a nutritional supplement.
Omega-3
Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential because the body needs them but can’t make them own. Therefore, you must obtain them through diet. Unfortunately, numerous factors lead to Omega-3 fatty acid deficiencies. The best way to mitigate these factors is through diet.
There are three types of omega-3 fatty acids found in foods, in this order from most important to least essential: alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Omega-3 fatty acids serve various functions, including reducing inflammation, lowering blood pressure, preventing irregular heartbeat, improving brain function, decreasing arthritis pain, lowering triglycerides, and preventing cancer. Humans must obtain omega-3 fatty acids through diet because the body does not synthesize its forms of omega-3s.
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Omega-3 is a fat found in fatty fish such as salmon, mackerels, and sardines that our body converts to omega-3 fatty acids such as EPA and DHA. In addition to boosting triglyceride levels, you can reduce inflammation and immunity with omega-3 oils. Omega-3 supplements also increase visual acuity, maintain heart health, and decrease your risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke.
Omega-3, an essential fatty acid, is believed to be the building block of life. It is used for everything from treating medical conditions to improving everyday wellness. Omega-3 is found in fish and fish oil. Two omega-3s widely used as supplements are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
Vitamin D
Did you know that Vitamin D is considered an essential micronutrient for your body? You can find its natural state in some products such as fish oil, beef liver, egg yolks, cheese, and milk. While these are good sources of vitamin D, most of us currently fall short of meeting the recommended daily intake.
Vitamin D is an essential vitamin that many people are deficient in, contributing to developing various diseases such as osteoporosis and cancer. However, most users don’t know that Vitamin D3 affects more than 4,000 genes in the human body – 45% of our genes.
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Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is essentially stored in the body through exposure to sunlight, and humans must maintain bone health. Fortunately, there are methods to make vitamin D supplementation more manageable.
Iron
Iron deficiency, or anemia, is the most common nutritional deficiency in the world. While it used to be more common in developing countries, even people in Europe experience iron deficiency due to poor nutrition and diet. This can lead to fatigue and increased susceptibility to illness.
Fortunately, iron deficiency can be easily recognized and treated.
Iron is an essential micronutrient in charge of transporting oxygen from the lungs to all over the body, resulting in better overall health.
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Consuming iron-rich foods will provide your body with enough iron so it can function accordingly. These types of food contain their fair share of iron and should be part of your diet.
Iron is the nutrient found in just about everybody’s system – from bones to blood to oxygen-carrying red blood cells. It has a complex function, but it all comes down to this: Iron helps you move oxygen from your lungs to your tissues.
Potassium
Potassium is found naturally in our food. It is an essential mineral your body needs to stay healthy. The human body requires more potassium than any other mineral. It is necessary for the normal functioning of all cells, tissues, and organs in your body. Consuming foods high in potassium helps to keep blood pressure levels normal. All of your cells use potassium to produce energy. If you are not consuming enough of your food, you can have muscle weakness and fatigue.
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Many people suffer from potassium deficiency and don’t even know it. Potassium is essential for muscle contractions, heart health, fluid balance, and nerve function. If you are experiencing high blood pressure or other cardiovascular issues, you will likely suffer from a potassium deficiency and don’t even realize it. Luckily, some items can help remedy this issue, but sometimes you may have to add more than one to get the potassium that your body needs. I will cover common sources of potassium and what foods have vitamin k because it works hand in hand with potassium.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is an essential vitamin that everyone should probably take-unless they have a pre-existing condition such as heart or stomach ulcers. There are two types of vitamin A:
- Retinoids (such as Beta-Carotene and Tretinoin), converted into retinal,
- Carotenoids (such as Beta Carotene).
If you’re looking to improve your overall health and give your immune system a boost, vitamin A is the most efficient way to do so! While other vitamins may be necessary for specific body processes, vitamin A is truly the best vitamin supplement for overall health. This essential nutrient is involved in the process of cell growth and repair. As a nutrient, it plays a big part in visual function and night vision, immunity, preventing cancer, and protection against heart disease. It is also believed that vitamin A may even be beneficial towards maintaining a healthy weight.
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Vitamin A is known for assisting with healthy vision and skin and boosts the immune system. It is one of the essential vitamins and minerals your body needs.
Co-Q10
Co-Q10 is not a new thing. It’s been around for several years now, but millions of people still are not taking this supplement that has more health benefits than you might think. It’s essential for your body as a cofactor to help process fats into energy. Without it, your cells would have trouble converting fat to energy, and this is something you don’t want. The stage in which your heart is most vulnerable to CoQ10 deficiencies is during the hardening period or the teenage years. Your heart needs adequate levels of Co-Q10 to prevent it from becoming stiff and rigid because if that happens, your heart stops working at its optimal capacity.
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Co-Q10, also known as Ubiquinone, is a substance that is produced in our body. It helps form the critical component of the electron transport chain in mitochondria. This means it plays a direct role in generating cellular energy. Research shows that Co-Q10 levels decrease dramatically with age. Supplements are often recommended to support healthy aging, especially those who lead an active lifestyle or regular exercise.
As a veteran fitness technology innovator and the founder of GearUpToFit.com, Alex Papaioannou stands at the intersection of health science and artificial intelligence. With over a decade of specialized experience in digital wellness solutions, he’s transforming how people approach their fitness journey through data-driven methodologies.