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We have been told repeatedly that wholesome diet is absolutely essential for our optimum health and overall well being. Even if you think you are eating a wholesome diet, there might be some important foods that you are leaving out and these cause vitamin deficiency in your body.
Having lack of essential vitamins in your body not only weakens the general health but it may also accelerate the aging process. Surprisingly, not only vegans and vegetarians but the raw food eaters may also be at risk of vitamin deficiency. Most people do not know what to eat in order to get enough vitamins for this body, so in this post we will help you find out.
Vitamin B in food
This is not one vitamin; instead it is a group of water soluble vitamins which often occur together in various types of foods. The most common forms of vitamin B deficiencies are the B9 and B12. Vitamin B12 is important for the brain and nervous system function.
It is also needed for the production of red blood cells. Vitamin B9 is needed for cell division and growth. Lack of these vitamins may cause fatal diseases such as anaemia, fatigue, depression, Alzheimer’s, premature birth, birth defects, and so on.
B vitamins can be found in large amounts in the unprocessed foods such as organic turkey, organic beef, wild fish, and free range eggs. They are also found in beans, molasses, lentils, and chilli peppers. Superfoods that contain high amounts of B vitamins are chlorella, spirulina, and marine phytoplankton.
Vitamin B in your diet – what should you watch out for?
Vitamin B is available in so many forms that you need a balanced and varied diet to be well covered in all areas. But which vitamin complexes can be found where?
Vitamin B1
Vitamin B1: Sunflower seeds are the frontrunners in vitamin content. However, vitamin B1 is also found in large quantities in legumes such as soybeans, peas, beans and lentils, as well as in ham, pork fillet and schnitzel.
Mandelins are a first-class source of vitamin B2. The active ingredient can also be found in dairy products, fish and seafood. The much needed vitamin B3 (up to 16 mg / day) can be found in legumes, sunflower seeds and peanuts, among others. It is also present in high-fat meat.
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B5 can be easily added with butter. The content is so high that the daily requirement can be covered with around 13 g of butter.
Although the daily requirement for vitamin B6 is extremely low, it is not easy to meet. Safe suppliers are seafood and soybeans or bananas. However, soybeans are a first-class supplier of vitamin B7. 100 grams a day are sufficient to cover the need.
Vitamin D in food
Vitamin D is needed for healthy teeth, strong bones, and it also helps in supporting the immune system. Optimize your vitamin D levels to protect yourself from the risk of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, rheumatoid arthritis, obesity, colds, and flu.
Vitamin D is naturally received from exposure to sunlight, and consuming cod liver oil, salmon, sardines, herring, mackerel and tuna. Another awesome superfood is krill oil that contains rich amounts of Vitamin D.
Vitamin D is mainly found in animal foods
Although we ingest relatively little of the important vitamin through food, this amount can be decisive, especially in dark times. Fish such as salmon, herring or tuna are among the largest suppliers of vitamin D – but cheese, eggs and mushrooms also contain the so-called “sun vitamin”.
There is so much vitamin D in these ten foods:
- Herring: 100 grams contain 31 micrograms of vitamin D
- Salmon: 100 grams contain 16 micrograms of vitamin D
- Oysters: 100 grams contain 8 micrograms of vitamin D
- Tuna: 100 grams contain 5.4 micrograms of vitamin D
- Eel (smoked): 100 grams contain 90 micrograms of vitamin D
- Cod liver oil: A spoon (approx. 15 grams) contains approx. 49 micrograms of vitamin D. Extrapolated to 100 grams, this is approx. 300 micrograms of vitamin D
- Eggs: An egg (size M, approx. 50 grams) provides approx. 1.5 micrograms of vitamin D
- Cheese: 100 grams of Gouda contains 1.3 micrograms of vitamin D, for example
- Mushrooms: 100 grams of porcini mushrooms contain 3.1 micrograms of vitamin D. The same amount of mushrooms is 1.9 micrograms of vitamin D
- Avocado: 100 grams contain 3.75 micrograms of vitamin D
Foods with vitamin C
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps in strengthening immune system, reducing cholesterol, healing wounds, and increasing the life of cells. If you are Vitamin C deficient then you will experience mood swings, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, weight loss, bruising, dry skin, dry hair, gum disease, infections and a weak immune system.
Vitamin C is found in green leafy vegetables, berries, tomatoes, citrus fruits, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, kiwi fruit, and peppers. Superfoods like goji berries, camu camu berries and blueberries are rich in Vitamin C.
Cabbage beats orange
However, some types of fruit and vegetables still have a much higher vitamin C content than oranges & Co. Surprisingly, many of them come from local cultivation. Cabbage vegetables – such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts and kale – can certainly keep up with citrus fruits. Some varieties even outperform them, although this excess is sometimes lost during cooking.
Most vitamins and minerals contain raw fruits and vegetables. Depending on the type of preparation, the proportion of vital substances can decrease significantly. “Vitamin C is water-soluble and sensitive to heat,” explains Manthey. Vegetables should therefore be steamed only briefly and with little water if possible.
Bush plum and Camu-Camu: exotic with a lot of vitamin C
Incidentally, the fruit types with the highest proportion of ascorbic acid are hardly available from local dealers. These include the acerola cherry (approximately 1700 milligrams per 100 grams) and the fruits of the Camu Camu shrub native to the Amazon region (approximately 2000 milligrams per 100 grams).
The frontrunner comes from Down Under: The pulp of the Australian bush plum contains up to 3000 milligrams per 100 grams, so it consists of around three percent vitamin C.
Vitamin E in food
Vitamin E contains eight fat-soluble compounds and this is a powerful antioxidant required by bodies to fight the toxins. The symptoms include dry hair, digestive problems, muscle weakness, hair loss, slow curing of wounds, leg cramps, infertility, lowered libido, age spots, anaemia, and cataracts.
Vitamin E is found in superfoods such as sweet potato, coconut oil, dandelion leaves, nuts, nut oil, spinach, cabbage, avocado, asparagus, papaya, kiwi, broccoli, mango, and lettuce.
Recommendations for a vitamin E-rich diet
Fats and oils, like nuts and seeds, are among the most important suppliers of vitamin E. The content of the fat-soluble vitamin can vary greatly depending on the product and preparation.
Bowl with nuts
While 1 tablespoon of wheat germ oil already covers about 150 percent of your vitamin E requirements, this value is still 11 percent for the same amount of olive oil. The content of vitamin E in nuts and seeds is also very different.
One advantage of eating nuts and seeds is that raw, unprocessed consumption means that there is no risk of losses due to processing.
Warning: If hazelnuts, pine nuts and walnuts are heated, vitamin E losses occur. The greatest vitamin E losses occur through roasting, braising and roasting. The average is 10 percent.
