Vitamins are substances that your body needs to grow and develop normally. There are 13 vitamins your body needs. They are
- Vitamin A
- B vitamins (thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12 andfolate)
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin K
You can usually get all your vitamins from the foods you eat. Your body can also make vitamins D and K. People who eat a vegetarian diet may need to take a vitamin B12 supplement.
Each vitamin has specific jobs. If you have low levels of certain vitamins, you may get health problems. For example, if you don’t get enough vitamin C, you could become anemic. Some vitamins may help prevent medical problems. Vitamin A prevents night blindness.
The best way to get enough vitamins is to eat a balanced diet with a variety of foods. In some cases, you may need to take vitamin supplements. It’s a good idea to ask your health care provider first. High doses of some vitamins can cause problems.
Vitamins are organic molecules (or a set of closely related molecules called vitamers) that are essential to an organism in small quantities for proper metabolic function. Essential nutrients cannot be synthesized in the organism in sufficient quantities for survival, and therefore must be obtained through the diet. For example, vitamin C can be synthesized by some species but not by others; it is not considered a vitamin in the first instance but is in the second. Most vitamins are not single molecules, but groups of related molecules called vitamers. For example, there are eight vitamers of vitamin E: four tocopherols and four tocotrienols.
The term vitamin does not include the three other groups of essential nutrients: minerals, essential fatty acids, and essential amino acids.
Major health organizations list thirteen vitamins:
- Vitamin A (all-trans-retinols, all-trans-retinyl-esters, as well as all-trans-β-carotene and other provitamin A carotenoids)
- Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
- Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
- Vitamin B3 (niacin)
- Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)
- Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
- Vitamin B7 (biotin)
- Vitamin B9 (folic acid and folates)
- Vitamin B12 (cobalamins)
- Vitamin C (ascorbic acid and ascorbates)
- Vitamin D (calciferols)
- Vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols)
- Vitamin K (phylloquinones, menaquinones, and menadiones)
Some sources include a fourteenth, choline.
Vitamins have diverse biochemical functions. Vitamin A acts as a regulator of cell and tissue growth and differentiation. Vitamin D provides a hormone-like function, regulating mineral metabolism for bones and other organs. The B complex vitamins function as enzyme cofactors (coenzymes) or the precursors for them. Vitamins C and E function as antioxidants. Both deficient and excess intake of a vitamin can potentially cause clinically significant illness, although excess intake of water-soluble vitamins is less likely to do so.
All the vitamins were discovered between 1913 and 1948. Historically, when intake of vitamins from diet was lacking, the results were vitamin deficiency diseases. Then, starting in 1935, commercially produced tablets of yeast-extract vitamin B complex and semi-synthetic vitamin C became available.This was followed in the 1950s by the mass production and marketing of vitamin supplements, including multivitamins, to prevent vitamin deficiencies in the general population. Governments have mandated the addition of some vitamins to staple foods such as flour or milk, referred to as food fortification, to prevent deficiencies. Recommendations for folic acid supplementation during pregnancy reduced risk of infant neural tube defects.
List of Vitamins
| Vitamin | Vitamers | Solubility | U.S. recommended dietary allowances per day ages 19–70)[11] |
Deficiency disease(s) | Overdose syndrome/symptoms | Food sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A |
|
fat | 900 μg/700 μg | night blindness, hyperkeratosis, and keratomalacia[12] | hypervitaminosis A | from animal origin as vitamin A / all-trans-retinol: fish in general, liver and dairy products;from plant origin as provitamin A / all-trans-beta-carotene: orange, ripe yellow fruits, leafy vegetables, carrots, pumpkin, squash, spinach | |
| B | B1 | water | 1.2 mg/1.1 mg | beriberi, Wernicke–Korsakoff syndrome | drowsiness and muscle relaxation[13] | pork, wholemeal grains, brown rice, vegetables, potatoes, liver, eggs | |
| B2 |
|
water | 1.3 mg/1.1 mg | ariboflavinosis, glossitis, angular stomatitis | dairy products, bananas, green beans, asparagus | ||
| B3 |
|
water | 16 mg/14 mg | pellagra | liver damage (doses > 2g/day)[14] and other problems | meat, fish, eggs, many vegetables, mushrooms, tree nuts | |
| B5 |
|
water | 5 mg/5 mg | paresthesia | diarrhea; possibly nausea and heartburn.[15] | meat, broccoli, avocados | |
| B6 | pyridoxine, pyridoxamine, pyridoxal | water | 1.3–1.7 mg/1.2–1.5 mg | anemia,[16] peripheral neuropathy | impairment of proprioception, nerve damage (doses > 100 mg/day)[17] | meat, vegetables, tree nuts, bananas | |
| B7 | biotin | water | AI: 30 μg/30 μg | dermatitis, enteritis | raw egg yolk, liver, peanuts, leafy green vegetables | ||
| B9 | folates, folic acid | water | 400 μg/400 μg | megaloblastic anemia and deficiency during pregnancy is associated with birth defects (e.g., neural-tube defects) | may mask symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency; other effects. | leafy vegetables, pasta, bread, cereal, liver | |
| B12 | cyanocobalamin, hydroxocobalamin, methylcobalamin, adenosylcobalamin | water | 2.4 μg/2.4 μg | vitamin B12 deficiency anemia[18] | none proven | meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk | |
| C | ascorbic acid | water | 90 mg/75 mg | scurvy | stomach pain, diarrhoea, and flatulence.[19] | many fruits and vegetables, liver | |
| D | D1 | mixture of molecular compounds of ergocalciferol with lumisterol, 1:1 | fat | 15 μg/15 μg | rickets and osteomalacia | hypervitaminosis D | |
| D2 | ergocalciferol | fat | sunlight-exposed mushrooms and yeast | ||||
| D3 | cholecalciferol | fat | fatty fish (mackerel, salmon, sardines), fish liver oils, eggs from hens fed vitamin D | ||||
| D4 | 22-dihydroergocalciferol | fat | |||||
| D5 | sitocalciferol | fat | |||||
| E | tocopherols, tocotrienols | fat | 15 mg/15 mg | deficiency is very rare; mild hemolytic anemia in newborn infants[20] | possible increased incidence of congestive heart failure.[21][22] | many fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, and seed oils | |
| K | K1 | phylloquinone | fat | AI: 110 μg/120 μg | bleeding diathesis | decreased anticoagulation effect of warfarin.[23] | leafy green vegetables such as spinach |
| K2 | menaquinone | fat | poultry and eggs, nattō, beef, pork, or fish | ||||
Vitamins and Minerals for Older Adults
Vitamins and minerals are two of the main types of nutrients that your body needs to survive and stay healthy. Find information on some of the essential vitamins recommended for older adults and how to get the recommended amount within your diet.
Key vitamins and minerals for people over age 51
Explore details about the following vitamins and minerals and recommended amounts for older adults:
Vitamin A | Vitamin B1 (Thiamin) | Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) | Vitamin B3 (Niacin) | Vitamin B6 | Vitamin B12 | Vitamin C | Calcium | Vitamin D | Vitamin E | Folate | Vitamin K | Magnesium | Potassium | Sodium
Vitamin A. Food Sources: Vitamin A can be found in products such as eggs and milk. It can also be found in vegetables and fruits, like carrots and mangoes.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 900 mcg RAE.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 700 mcg RAE each day.
Vitamin B1 (Thiamin). Food Sources: You can find vitamin B1 in meat – especially pork – and fish. It’s also in whole grains and some fortified breads, cereals, and pastas.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 1.2 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 1.1 mg each day.
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin). Food Sources: You can find vitamin B2 in eggs and organ meat, such as liver and kidneys, and lean meat. You can also find it in green vegetables, like asparagus and broccoli.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 1.3 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 1.1 mg each day.
Vitamin B3 (Niacin). Food Sources: Vitamin B3 can be found in some types of nuts, legumes, and grains. It can also be found in poultry, beef, and fish.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 16 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 14 mg each day.
Vitamin B6. Food Sources: Vitamin B6 is found in a wide variety of foods. The richest sources of vitamin B6 include fish, beef liver, potatoes and other starchy vegetables, and fruit (other than citrus).
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 1.7 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 1.5 mg each day.
Vitamin B12. Food Sources: You can get this vitamin from meat, fish, poultry, milk, and fortified breakfast cereals. Some people over age 50 have trouble absorbing the vitamin B12 found naturally in foods. They may need to take vitamin B12 supplements and eat foods fortified with this vitamin.
- Men Age 51+: 2.4 mcg every day
- Women Age 51+: 2.4 mcg every day
Vitamin C. Food Sources: Fruits and vegetables are some of the best sources of vitamin C. Citrus fruits, tomatoes, and potatoes can be a large source of vitamin C.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 90 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women 51 and older should aim for 75 mg each day.
Calcium. Food Sources: Calcium is a mineral that is important for strong bones and teeth, so there are special recommendations for older people who are at risk for bone loss. You can get calcium from milk and other dairy, some forms of tofu, dark-green leafy vegetables, soybeans, canned sardines and salmon with bones, and calcium-fortified foods.
- Men Age 51+: Men age 51-70 need 1,000 mg each day. Men age 71 need 1,200 mg each day. Don’t consume more than 2,000 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: 1,200 mg each day. Don’t consume more than 2,000 mg each day.
Vitamin D. Food Sources: You can get vitamin D from fatty fish, fish liver oils, fortified milk and milk products, and fortified cereals.
- Men Age 51+: If you are age 51–70, you need at least 15 mcg (600 IU) each day, but not more than 100 mcg (4,000 IU). If you are over age 70, you need at least 20 mcg (800 IU), but not more than 100 mcg (4,000 IU).
- Women Age 51+: If you are age 51–70, you need at least 15 mcg (600 IU) each day, but not more than 100 mcg (4,000 IU). If you are over age 70, you need at least 20 mcg (800 IU), but not more than 100 mcg (4,000 IU).
Vitamin E. Food Sources: Vitamin E can be found in nuts like peanuts and almonds and can be found in vegetable oils, too. It can also be found in green vegetables, like broccoli and spinach.
- Men Age 51+: Most men age 51 and older should aim for 15 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women age 51 and older should aim for 15 mg each day.
Folate. Food Sources: Folate can be found in vegetables and fruit, such as broccoli, brussel sprouts, spinach, and oranges. It can also be found in nuts, beans, and peas.
- Men Age 51+: Most men age 51 and older should aim for 400 mcg DFE each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women age 51 and older should aim for 400 mcg DFE each day.
Vitamin K. Food Sources: Vitamin K can be found in many foods including green leafy vegetables, like spinach and kale and in some fruits, such as blueberries and figs. It can also be found in cheese, eggs, and different meats.
- Men Age 51+: Most men 51 and older should aim for 120 mcg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women should aim for 90 mcg each day.
Magnesium. Food Sources: This mineral, generally, is found in foods containing dietary fiber, such as green leafy vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts and seeds. Breakfast cereals and other fortified foods often have added magnesium. Magnesium is also present in tap, mineral, or bottled drinking water.
- Men Age 51+: 420 mg each day
- Women Age 51+: 320 mg each day
Potassium. Food Sources: Many different fruits, vegetables, meats, and dairy foods contain potassium. Foods high in potassium include dried apricots, lentils, and potatoes. Adults get a lot of their potassium from milk, coffee, tea, and other nonalcoholic beverages.
- Men Age 51+: Men need 3,400 mg each day.
- Women Age 51+: Most women age 51 and older need 2,600 mg each day
Sodium. Food Sources: Preparing your own meals at home without using a lot of processed foods or salt will allow you to control how much sodium you get.
- Men Age 51+: Men 51 and older should reduce their sodium intake to 2,300 mg each day. That is about 1 teaspoon of salt and includes sodium added during manufacturing or cooking as well as at the table when eating. If you have high blood pressure or prehypertension, limiting sodium intake to 1,500 mg per day, about 2/3 teaspoon of salt, may be helpful.
- Women Age 51+: Women 51 and older should reduce their sodium intake to 2,300 mg each day. That is about 1 teaspoon of salt and includes sodium added during manufacturing or cooking as well as at the table when eating. If you have high blood pressure or prehypertension, limiting sodium intake to 1,500 mg per day, about 2/3 teaspoon of salt, may be helpful.