Vitamins & Minerals Detailed Notes

Dietary Supplements

• Classified as “Nutritional Supplements”.

• Not foods, and not drugs.

• A product intended to supplement the diet and contains vitamins, minerals, botanicals, amino acids, and their extracts.

• NOT consumed as a food replacement, marketed as one, or used as vitamins.

• Loosely regulated, “not evaluated by FDA”.

• A “drug” is used to “prevent, treat or cure” disease, which supplements cannot claim.

Vitamins

• Almost all foods contain some vitamins.

• The amount of vitamin in a food depends on the amount naturally present, what is added, and how it is processed, prepared, and stored.

• Vitamins promote and regulate the body’s activities.

Minerals

• Come from both plant and animal sources.

• Contribute to the body’s structure and help regulate body processes.

Vitamins & Minerals

• The body’s needs are best met through a consumption of a wide variety of foods.

Nature of Vitamins

• Vitamins are organic (carbon) compounds needed for normal function, growth, and maintenance.

• Vitamins are cofactors (enzyme helpers).

• They are not a source of calories.

• Physiological role: specific metabolic function.

• Prevent disease (unlike supplements).

• Natural vitamins are equivalent to synthetic ones (except Vitamin E).

Classification of Vitamins

• Water-soluble: vitamin B group (heat-sensitive, light sensitive), vitamin C.

• Fat-soluble: vitamins A, D, E, K.

Fat-Soluble Vitamins

• Dissolve in fat.

• Can be stored in the body.

• A, D, E, K.

• Excess A and D can be harmful; E and K usually not.

Water-Soluble Vitamins

• Dissolve in water.

• Carried in the bloodstream, not stored in the body.

• C and B-complex vitamins.

• May not cause harm with increased amounts.

Specific Fat-Soluble Vitamins

• Vitamin A:

  • Orange, carotenoids, vision, antioxidant.

  • Used by the food industry as a color and antioxidant.

• Vitamin D:

  • We make it with sunlight, deficiency causes rickets.

  • Added to milk, regulates Ca:P ratios.

• Vitamin E:

  • Tocopherols, antioxidants, role in preventing stroke, cancer, heart disease.

  • Used by the food industry as an antioxidant.

• Vitamin K: Contributes to blood clotting factor.

Vitamin A (and Carotenoids)

• Functions:

  • Normal vision

  • Protects from infections

  • Regulates immune system

  • Antioxidant (carotenoids)

• Food sources:

  • Liver

  • Fish oil

  • Eggs

  • Fortified milk or other foods

  • Red, yellow, orange, and dark green veggies (carotenoids)

• Carotenoids:

  • Used in the food industry as a colorant (orange) (label friendly).

  • Antioxidant (label friendly).

  • Stored in the liver.

  • Important for sight

  • Deficiency causes ~500,000 cases of “night blindness” worldwide.

  • Genetically engineered rice with high Vitamin A can prevent night blindness.

  • Carotenosis.

Vitamin D

• Also known as calciferol due to its role in calcium absorption.

• Main role is to maintain calcium and potassium levels, ratios.

• It is the only fat-soluble vitamin that we can make - in the presence of sunlight.

• Can be made from cholesterol.

Vitamin D - The Sunshine Vitamin

• Functions:

  • Promotes absorption of calcium and phosphorus.

  • Helps deposit those in bones/teeth.

  • Regulates cell growth

  • Plays a role in immunity

• Sources:

  • Sunlight (10 – 15 mins 2x a week)

  • Salmon with bones

  • Milk

  • Orange juice (fortified)

  • Fortified cereals

• Can be stored in fat tissues (as can all fat-soluble vitamins).

• Elderly and shut-ins are at risk - not enough sunlight.

• We get vitamin D form fortified milk and cereal.

• Toxicity is very dangerous.

  • Occurs only from excess supplementation

  • Can lead to calcium deposits in kidneys, heart, and blood vessels.

• Rickets can be caused by a lack of sunlight, but also from insufficient calcium.

• Vitamin D linked to calcium absorption.

Vitamin K

• Functions:

  • Contributes to the synthesis of seven blood clotting factors; helps blood clot.

  • Works as a cofactor for an enzyme that makes two bone proteins.

• Sources:

  • Body can produce on its own (from bacteria in intestines)

  • Green, leafy veggies

  • Some fruits, other veggies, and nuts.

Vitamin E

• A family of eight naturally occurring compounds.

• Used as an anti-oxidant in foods.

• Since aging is considered an “oxidation” reaction, many “anti-oxidants” are used as dietary supplements.

• Deficiencies are not well understood.

• The role is in stroke, cancer, heart health, and immune response.

• Americans spend $300 million per year on vitamin E supplements.

• Sources:

  • Vegetable oils

  • Foods made from oil (salad dressing, margarine)

  • Nuts

  • Seeds

  • Wheat germ

  • Green, leafy veggies

Water-Soluble Vitamins

• B1, thiamine

• B2, riboflavin

• B6, pyridoxamine

• B12

• Biotin

• Panothenic acid

• Niacin

• Folacin

• Vitamin C

Specific Water Soluble Vitamins

• Vitamin B1 – Thiamine

  • Involved in carbohydrate metabolism.

  • Helps body metabolize glucose, affects central nervous system.

  • Deficiency causes Beri beri (Singlese, “I can’t, I can’t”).

• B2 - riboflavin

  • Energy metabolism.

• Thiamin – B1

  • Functions: Helps produce energy from carbs.

  • Sources: Whole-grain and enriched grain products, pork, liver.

• Riboflavin (B2)

  • Bacteria in the gut can produce small amounts of riboflavin, but not enough to meet dietary needs.

  • Riboflavin is a key component of coenzymes involved with the growth of cells, energy production, and the breakdown of fats, steroids, and medications.

  • Most riboflavin is used immediately and not stored in the body, so excess amounts are excreted in the urine.

  • An excess of dietary riboflavin, usually from supplements, can cause urine to become bright yellow.

  • Sources: Liver, yogurt and milk, enriched grains, eggs, green, leafy veggies.

• B6 - Pyridoxamine

  • Neurotransmitter, co-enzyme in over 100 reactions

• B12

  • Sources of Vitamin B12 include animal products such as meat, fish, poultry, dairy, and eggs.

  • Development of red blood cells

  • Lack of it makes one anemic

  • Hard for vegans to get

• Vitamin B6 deficiency most often occurs when other B vitamins in the body are low, particularly vitamin B12 and folic acid.

  • A mild deficiency may have no symptoms, but a more severe or prolonged deficiency can exhibit:

    • Microcytic anemia

    • Skin conditions

    • Depression

    • Confusion

    • Lowered immunity

• Vitamin B6 is found in a variety of animal and plant foods.

  • Beef liver, tuna, salmon, fortified cereals, chickpeas, poultry, some vegetables and fruits, especially dark leafy greens, bananas, papayas, oranges, and cantaloupe

Vitamin B12

• Vitamin B12, or cobalamin, is naturally found in animal foods. It can also be added to foods or supplements.

• Vitamin B12 is needed to form red blood cells and DNA.

• It is also a key player in the function and development of brain and nerve cells.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency

• People who do not eat meat, fish, poultry, or dairy are at risk of becoming deficient in vitamin B12, since it is only found naturally in animal products.

• Studies have shown that vegetarians have low vitamin B blood levels.

• For this reason, those who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet should include B12-fortified foods or a B12 supplement in their diets.

• This is particularly important for pregnant women, as the fetus requires adequate vitamin B12 for neurologic development and deficiency can lead to permanent neurological damage.

Folic Acid/Folate

• Folate is the natural form of vitamin B9, water-soluble and naturally found in many foods.

• It is also added to foods and sold as a supplement in the form of folic acid; this form is actually better absorbed than that from food sources—$85\%$ vs. $50\%$, respectively.

• Folate helps to form DNA and RNA and is involved in protein metabolism.

• It plays a key role in breaking down homocysteine, an amino acid that can exert harmful effects in the body if it is present in high amounts.

• Folate is also needed to produce healthy red blood cells and is critical during periods of rapid growth, such as during pregnancy and fetal development.

• Too little folate is linked to birth defects of the spine (spina bifida) and brain (anencephaly).

• Too little folate increased a woman’s chances of having a baby with spina bifida or anencephaly and that getting enough folate could greatly reduce the incidence of these birth defects.

Folate Timing

• For folate to be effective, it must be taken in the first few weeks after conception, often before a woman knows she is pregnant.

• Enough folate, at least 400 mcg daily, isn’t always easy to get from food that is not fortified.

• That is why women of childbearing age are urged to take extra folic acid as a supplement.

• Since the advent of mandatory folic acid fortification in 1998, neural tube birth defects have dropped by $28\%$, and studies have shown that far fewer people have low levels of folate in their blood.

Folate & Cancer

• Folate may play a dual role in cancer development: it may provide protection early in carcinogenesis and in individuals with a low folate status, yet it may promote carcinogenesis if administered later and potentially at very high intakes.

• More folate is not better in all circumstances.

Niacin: Vitamin B3

• Forms: nicotinic acid and nicotinamide.

• The body can also convert tryptophan—an amino acid—to nicotinamide.

• Niacin works in the body as a coenzyme, with more than 400 enzymes dependent on it for various reactions.

• Niacin helps to convert nutrients into energy, create cholesterol and fats, create and repair DNA, and exert antioxidant effects.

• A niacin deficiency is rare because it is found in many foods, both from animals and plants.

• Deficiency Disease – pellagra – The Four D’s

  • Dermatitis

  • Diarrhea

  • Dementia

  • Death

Corn & Niacin

• Corn is naturally high in niacin, but it is bound to carbohydrates which makes it difficult for the human body to absorb.

• However, when corn is nixtamalized (a traditional process in tortilla making where corn is treated with calcium hydroxide, cooked, and ground) the niacin becomes absorbable because of the calcium hydroxide treatment.

The B Vitamins--In Concert

• The B Vitamins are interdependent.

• The presence of one may affect the absorption, metabolism, and excretion of another.

• A deficiency of one may affect the functioning or deficiency of another.

• A variety of foods from each food group will provide an adequate supply of all the B vitamins

B Vitamin Deficiencies

• Deficiencies rarely occur singly except for beriberi and pellagra.

• Can be primary or secondary causes

• Glossitis and cheilosis are two symptoms common to B vitamin deficiencies.

Vitamin C - Ascorbic Acid

• Very inexpensive to add to food, marketing tool, antioxidant.

• Deficiency leads to bleeding gums, hemorrhages.

• High in citrus fruits, limes (Limeys).

• Also, in:

  • Bell peppers

  • Strawberries

  • Tomatoes

  • Vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower

• Functions:

  • Helps produce collagen (connective tissue in bones, muscles, etc.)

  • Keeps capillary walls, blood vessels firm

  • Helps the body absorb iron and folate

  • Healthy gums

  • Heals cuts and wounds

  • Protects from infection, boosts immunity

  • Antioxidant

• Deficiency disease: Scurvy

Ascorbic Acid & Scurvy

• Deficiency disease displays symptoms resulting from the loss of collagen that weakens connective tissues:

  • Skin spots caused by bleeding and bruising from broken blood vessels

  • Swelling or bleeding of gums, and eventual loss of teeth

  • Hair loss

  • Delayed healing of skin wounds

  • Fatigue, malaise

Vitamin C - Ascorbic Acid Cont.

• Vitamin C plays a role in controlling infections and healing wounds and is a powerful antioxidant that can neutralize harmful free radicals.

• It is needed to make collagen, a fibrous protein in connective tissue that is weaved throughout various systems in the body: nervous, immune, bone, cartilage, blood, and others.

• The vitamin helps make several hormones and chemical messengers used in the brain and nerves.

• Smoking can deplete vitamin C levels in the body, so an additional 35 mg beyond the RDA is suggested for smokers.

• Cigarette smoke contains various harmful chemicals, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radicals, which can lead to oxidative stress in the body.

• Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant, helping to neutralize these harmful molecules.

• When a person smokes, their body requires more Vitamin C to counteract the increased oxidative stress.

• As a result, smokers have higher requirements for Vitamin C.

• Additionally, smoking can directly damage tissues in the body, including the lungs, potentially reducing the absorption and utilization of Vitamin C.

• Therefore, smoking is associated with decreased levels of Vitamin C in the body.

Defending Against Free Radicals

• Vitamin C protects watery components in the body (fluid in the blood) against free radical damage.

• Vitamin C also is especially good at stopping free radicals air pollution and cigarette smoke.
  Note: The combination of vitamins E and C used in the Antioxidant Supplementation in Atherosclerosis Prevention Study, the Roche European American Cataract Trial, the Age- Related Eye Disease Study, and the Medical Research Centre/British Heart Foundation trials, as well as the simvastatin-niacin study of Brown et al were already described for their antioxidant treatments (6, 34, 35, 38, 91). These studies support the safety of vitamin E and C in combination.

Vitamin C- Ascorbic Acid cont.

• Despite being a popular fix, vitamin C’s cold-fighting potential hasn’t panned out.

• Reviews of several studies show that megadoses (greater than 500 mg daily) of supplemental vitamin C have no significant effect on the common cold but may provide a moderate benefit in decreasing the duration and severity of colds in some groups of people.

• Small trials suggest that the amount of vitamin C in a typical multivitamin taken at the start of a cold might ease symptoms, but for the average person, there is no evidence that megadoses make a difference, or that they prevent colds

Minerals & Percent of Body Weight

• Calcium: $2\%$

• Phosphorus: $1\%$

• Potassium: $0.3\%$

• Sulfur: $0.2\%$

• Sodium: $0.1\%$

• Chloride: $0.1\%$

• Magnesium: $0.05\%$

• Iron: $0.04\%$

Calcium

• $99\%$ is structural

• ~$25\%$ absorption

• Vitamin D aids absorption

• $75\%$ is obtained from dairy products

• Many products are fortified with it

• Built in youth, lost in maturity

• Very hard for vegans to get enough calcium

Calcium & Osteoporosis

• Osteoporosis – a pediatric disease with geriatric consequences

• 1.5 million fractures each year- major cause of subsequent mortality ($25\%$ within one year)

• 14 billion in direct health costs

• 25 million women at risk

• DRI women 600 – 800 mg/day

Risk Factors for Osteoporosis

• Gender

• Age

• Race

• Frame size

• Eating disorders

• Low calcium intake

• Excess soda consumption (Ca:P ratio).

• The link between osteoporosis and caffeinated sodas isn't clear, but caffeine may interfere with calcium absorption and its diuretic effect may increase mineral loss. In addition, the phosphoric acid in soda may contribute to bone loss.

• Bone density can be improved at any time.

Soda

• Extra calories

• Poor nutrient density

• Interferes with calcification

• Replaces more nutritious drinks

Minerals Cont.

• Phosphorus

  • Easily absorbed by the body

  • Enhanced by Vitamin D

  • Deficiencies are rare

  • Source: Soda, phosphoric acid

• Potassium

  • A primary electrolyte in the blood

  • Associated with lower blood pressure

  • Important for Athletes

Sodium an Chloride

• Added during processing

• Enhances flavor

• We consume 2X of what we need (DV = 2.4 grams, 1/10 ounce)

• Excess Sodium can lead to hypertension (High blood pressure)

Salt Uses in Foods

• Enhances other flavors, cuts cost

• Salty taste, per se

• Increases consumer acceptance

• Raises boiling point of liquids (pasta)

• Masks bitter tastes

• Food safety

• Water binding

Electrolytes

• Chloride

  • Fluid balance

  • Digestion of food, transmits nerve impulses

• Potassium

  • Maintains blood pressure

  • Nerve impulses and muscle contraction

• Sodium

  • Fluid balance

  • Muscles relax, transmit nerve impulses

  • Regulates blood pressure

Iron

• Most common and easily preventable deficiency

• Needed for oxygen absorption, immune function, developmental performance

• Poor absorption from plant sources

• Low iron causes anemia, especially in menstruating women

• Toxicity

  • 6 – 12 vitamins with 100% iron content will kill a small child (The dose makes the poison.)

Iron Sources in Foods

• Animals (heme) vs. plants (non-heme).

• Better absorbed from heme, meat sources.

• Consume vitamin C with non-heme.

• Fortified cereals, beans, etc.

• Vitamin C improves the absorption of non-heme iron, the type of iron found in plant foods such as leafy greens. Drinking a small glass of 100% fruit juice or including a vitamin-C- rich food with meals can help boost iron absorption.

How to Minimize Nutrient Losses in Cooking

• Steaming is a great way to cook vegetables quickly and retain valuable nutrients.

• Simply boiling in water does reduce water-soluble nutrients

• Stir frying is another way to quickly cook a variety of vegetables.

• Always cover your pot to hold in steam and heat. This will also help to reduce cooking time.

• Use any leftover cooking water for soups and stews, sauces, or vegetable juice drinks.

• Eat fruits and vegetables raw whenever possible in salads and smoothies or as whole fruits and vegetables.

• Cook vegetables until crisp. Don't overcook.

• Use as little water as possible when cooking.

Fortification vs. Enrichment

• Fortification - restores lost nutrients due to processing

• Enrichment – adds nutritional value to meet a specific standard

Vitamins & Minerals Added to Manufactured Foods

• Vitamin C to prevent oxidation

• B-complex vitamins added as nutrient additives

• B6, B12 vitamins, folic acid, biotin, in manufactured foods

• Vitamins A, D, and E

• Calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus

• Calcium added to orange juice

Vitamin B12 Absorption

• Vitamin B12 binds to the protein in the foods we eat. In the stomach, hydrochloric acid and enzymes unbind vitamin B12 into its free form. From there, vitamin B12 combines with a protein called intrinsic factor so that it can be absorbed further down in the small intestine.

• Vitamin B12 tablets are available in high dosages far above the recommended dietary allowance, but these high amounts are not necessarily the amount that will be absorbed because an adequate amount of intrinsic factor is also needed.

• In cases of severe vitamin B12 deficiency due to inadequate intrinsic factor (pernicious anemia), doctors may prescribe B12 injections in the muscle.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency Causes

• A much more common cause of B12 deficiency, especially in older people, is a lack of stomach acid, because stomach acid is needed to liberate vitamin B12 from food.

• People who regularly take medications that suppress stomach acid for conditions like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or peptic ulcer disease—such as proton-pump inhibitors, H2 blockers, or other antacids— may have difficulty absorbing vitamin B12 from food. These drugs can slow the release or decrease production of stomach acid.

• Anyone using these medications for an extended time and who are at risk for a vitamin B12 deficiency for other reasons should be monitored closely by their physician. They may also choose to use fortified foods or supplements with vitamin B12, as these forms are typically absorbed well, and do not require stomach acid.