There has been a shift when it comes to nutrition. More focus has been put on macronutrients — carbohydrates, fat and protein — than micronutrients. Macros are definitely important and are needed to create healthy meals. The problem is, though, when we focus just on these, we end up often eating the same thing, use lower quality foods, and don’t think about wellness holistically.
There are many different vitamins and minerals — micronutrients — that are essential to your health. Some are more important than others. Vitamins have hundreds of roles in our bodies that help us to feel and operate at our best. If we focus only on macronutrients and start eating the same thing every day, it makes life easier, but will lack a broad range of vital micronutrients. So when we start changing our eating habits to more healthy ones, variety should be at the top of the list of to-do’s in order to get all of the vitamins and minerals we need.
There are 13 essential vitamins that our bodies need but can’t produce on our own — vitamins A, B (biotin, B6, B12, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folate, pantothenic acid), C, D, E, and K. These 13 vitamins are one of two kinds: water-soluble or fat-soluble. The two types are used and stored differently in the body.
Water-soluble vitamins are absorbed quite easily by the body. Because of this, you won’t store large amounts of these vitamins, and that is why you need to keep getting them from food to make sure you are getting what you need regularly. Your kidneys remove excess water-soluble vitamins that aren’t needed. So taking extra through supplementation won’t necessarily do you much good.
Fat-soluble vitamins work a bit differently because they dissolve in fat and are then stored in tissue. This enables the body to access them when needed. This is why we need to be careful with supplements. Your body can’t remove the excess fat-soluble vitamins the same way it does with water-soluble vitamins, which means the excess can build up in the body —potentially to unhealthy levels.
So let’s break this down into two parts so you know why each vitamin is important, what foods contain them, and how much your body needs. In this article, part one, I’ll start with fat-soluble vitamins; I’ll talk about the water-soluble vitamins in part two, coming soon.
Vitamin A
This is a fat-soluble vitamin that gets stored in the liver. There are two types of vitamin A: preformed vitamin A (retinol), which is found in animal products, and the precursor, provitamin A, which is found in plant-based foods. The most common form of provitamin A is beta carotene.
Vitamin A has many functions in the body. It helps form and maintain healthy teeth, skeletal and soft tissue, mucus membranes, and skin. It promotes good eyesight, especially in low light. It also has a role in healthy reproduction and breastfeeding.
Retinol is found in animal liver, salmon, tuna and dairy products.
Provitamin A carotenoids are plant pigments. The body converts them into vitamin A. There are over 500 carotenoids. Like I mentioned above, one of the most important is beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is an antioxidant that is needed to help protect our cells from damage caused by excess free radicals (free radicals are unstable molecules that can damage cells, and possibly cause illness and premature aging) caused by oxidative stress — an imbalance between free radicals and antioxidants in your body.
Being that vitamin A is fat-soluble and stored in the liver or fat tissue, how much we have does matter. If you don’t eat a lot of vegetables or fish, you could be low in vitamin A. To increase your levels of vitamin A, your first step would be to eat fruits and vegetables that are yellow or orange, and dark leafy greens (carrots, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cantaloupe, and winter squash) and eat more wild-caught fish. It isn’t common for people to be deficient in vitamin A, but if you think might be due to not eating foods high in this vitamin, then consult a doctor before supplementing.
Vitamin D
This is a vitamin we get from food we eat and a hormone that our body makes — a prohormone to be exact. It is another fat-soluble vitamin that has a part in helping the body absorb and maintain calcium and phosphorus levels. These minerals are both critical for strong bones. It also may help control infection and help reduce inflammation.
Vitamin D production from the skin having contact with the sun is a large natural source of vitamin D. Unfortunately, many people are deficient because they live in places where sunlight is limited in winter, or they have very little sun exposure due to spending most of their time inside.
There are two forms of vitamin D: D2 and D3. D3 can be obtained from food sources like wild-caught fatty fish, liver, and egg yolk. D2 is harder to get from foods but can be found in smaller amounts in mushrooms or foods that are enriched with D2, like milks and cereals.
Vitamin D3 is the form that is made from the chemical reaction that happens in the skin when the sun makes contact.
Supplementation is necessary for most people but how much we need will vary greatly. Best practice is to consult a physician who will do a blood test to determine your current vitamin D levels. Taking too much could be harmful to your body.
Vitamin E
This fat-soluble nutrient is found in many foods, which makes it less likely for people to become deficient in it. It has many crucial roles in the body: it’s important for vision, reproduction, and for healthy blood and skin as well as brain health. Vitamin E also acts as an antioxidant, which helps rid the body of free radicals.
You can find vitamin E in vegetable oils like sunflower and safflower oils, which are a couple of the best sources. Nuts like peanuts, hazelnuts, and, especially almonds, as well as sunflower seeds are very high in vitamin E. You can get some in fatty fishes like salmon and in avocado. You can also find smaller amounts in green vegetables, like spinach and broccoli.
As we age, our bodies require higher amounts of vitamin E and pregnant women will also need higher levels. Synthetic supplementation is not as well-absorbed as natural vitamin E from foods. So your best bet is to eat foods high in vitamin E for better results. If you feel you need to supplement, contact your doctor first.
Vitamin K
The last important fat-soluble vitamin comes in two forms, K1 and K2. The main type is K1, which is called phylloquinone. It is found in green leafy vegetables like collard greens, kale, and spinach.
The other, K2, is called menaquinone, and can be found in some animal foods and fermented foods. K2 can also be produced by bacteria in the body.
Vitamin K has very important roles in the body. It helps with blood clotting, bone metabolism, and regulating blood calcium levels. The body needs vitamin K to produce prothrombin. Prothrombin is a protein and clotting element that is important in blood clotting and bone metabolism.
Vitamin K deficiency is rare due to its availability in plant foods like collard greens, spinach, kale, broccoli, cabbage, beet and mustard greens, and natto (fermented soybeans).
When people eat foods high in vitamin K, bacteria in the large intestine convert it to K2, which is the storage form. It is then absorbed in the small intestine and stored in our fatty tissue and our liver.
As you can see, these fat-soluble vitamins have very important roles in the body. Due to being stored and kept in the body, deficiencies are rare. Focusing on good gut health is important because if you aren’t digesting and storing fats properly, this could lead to fat-soluble vitamins not being assimilated and stored.
Always seek out professional help when it comes to supplementing these vitamins. Getting a blood test can tell you if you are deficient in any of them and you can then be given the appropriate advice for increasing their levels, whether through supplementation or food.
Watch out for my next article on vitamins: in part two, I’ll talk about the water-soluble vitamins, how our body uses them, and where your body gets them.
