3 Student Responses and One guy asked you the questions

Share the details you discovered with your vitamin and mineral but be sure to discuss the others with your fellow students. As always, the bulk of the points will come from your initial post with additional points from your discussion with a minimum of 3 other students. 

Jeremy said to you: I understand from your response zinc is found in a variety of plant and animal sources could you be more specific as to foods are high in zinc? In other words if I were lacking zinc what foods would be best to eat in order to get more zinc in my diet? Are daily zinc supplements a good idea if I am lacking zinc in my normal diet?

Jeremy

Vitamin D

D Vitamin is an important nutrient that helps with the absorption of a variety of other nutrients like calcium and phosphorus.  Without vitamin D, bones and muscle would struggle to absorb important nutrient. With the exception of fatty fish and sunlight vitamin D can be a difficult vitamin to find naturally. Most of the vitamin D we consume is found in fortified foods and drinks like Milk and cereals. As a result, the majority of people in the united states do not consume enough vitamin D.  It is important to consume enough vitamin D to avoid osteoporosis which can cause bones to weaken.  Children lacking in vitamin D are also at risk for rickets which can result in softened or deformed bones. Your body is able to store vitamin D for months at a time.

Potassium

Potassium is an very important mineral that with sodium helps to maintain proper fluid balance in the body. Potassium is crucial in helping muscles and nerves to work properly. Without potassium muscles, including your heart, would not function properly. Potassium allows muscles to contract which is what allows the heart to pump blood. Potassium is frequently unconsumed by Americans and can be found in various fruits and vegetables like bananas and potatoes.  Potassium can also be found in milk products, meats, seafood and some beans. A lack of potassium can also effect kidneys and cardiovascular systems leading to symptoms like high blood pressure and irregular heartbeat. To much potassium, or hyperkalemia, can effect the body in negative ways like stomach problems, nerve and muscle problems leading to difficultly breathing, even cardiac arrest.

N.Nguyen

[Vitamin A] -Vitamin A is the generic term for a group of fat-soluble compounds highly important for human health. -They’re essential for many processes in your body, including maintaining healthy vision, ensuring the normal function of your immune system and organs and aiding the proper growth and development of babies in the womb. -Vitamin A is a fat-soluable vitamin that is naturally present in many foods. Vitamin A is important for normal vision, the immune system, and reproduction. Vitamin A also helps the heart, lungs, and other organs work properly. -Concentrations of preformed vitamin A are highest in liver and fish oils. Other sources of preformed vitamin A are milk and eggs, which also include some provitamin A. Most dietary provitamin A comes from leafy green vegetables, orange and yellow vegetables, tomato products, fruits, and some vegetable oils. The top food sources of vitamin A in the U.S. diet include dairy products, liver, fish, and fortified cereals; the top sources of provitamin A include carrots, broccoli, cantaloupe, and squash. [Zinc] - A mineral found in most cells of the body. It helps enzymes work properly, helps maintain a healthy immune system, helps maintain the senses of taste and smell, and is needed for wound healing, making DNA, and normal growth and development during pregnancy, childhood, and adolescence. Zinc is found in some foods, including oysters, red meat, poultry, beans, nuts, certain seafood, whole grains, fortified breakfast cereals, and dairy products. - Zinc is a nutrient that people need to stay healthy. Zinc is found in cells throughout the body. It helps the immune system fight off invading bacteria and viruses. The body also needs zinc to make proteins and DNA, the genetic material in all cells. During pregnancy, infancy, and childhood, the body needs zinc to grow and develop properly. Zinc also helps wounds heal and is important for proper senses of taste and smell.

Beverly May Rebultan

VITAMIN C

· Vitamins plays an important role in our body. There are organic compounds that are needed in small quantities to sustain life, they are essential to normal metabolism and most of them are found in foods that we eat because the human body can produce them not enough or not produce them at all. Vitamins have different roles and depends on each organism including humans has different vitamin requirement.

· Vitamin C ,chemical name: Ascorbic acid , is a water soluble vitamin which means it doesn't stay in the body for a long time, it is excreted in the urine and needs to replace more often that fat soluble vitamins.

· Vitamin C helps maintain healthy bones and skin ,widen blood vessels that can help protect against heart diseases, high blood pressure ,hypertension and may lower cholesterol, it plays an important role in production of collagen, serves as an antioxidant ,helps repair tissue and reduce damage from inflammation ,may also help prevent acute respiratory  infection and help people that are physically stressed and malnourished.

· According to NIH (national institute of health),males should consume 90 mg and females 75mg per day, while pregnant women should consume 85mg and 120mg while breastfeeding.

· Good sources of vitamin c may come from fresh fruits and vegetable like sweet red pepper, citrus fruits,strawberries,spinach ,tomatoes and potatoes, which are best if consumed as raw if possible, cause some nutrients may leave the food in the cooking process.

· Taking to much vitamin C is unlikely to be harmful but can lead to diarrhea and gastrointestinal discomfort.

· Groups that are more likely to lack this nutrient are smokers and passive smokers, people with limited food variety ,anorexia, people with too much alcohol consumption and people with some chronic disease.

· Wounds that take longer to heal is associated with person with Scurvy ,a vitamin C Deficiency, symptoms includes swollen joints, bleeding gums, loose tooth ,anemia and tiredness. It is easily treated with adding vitamin c to your diet and asking medical doctor for supplements that are available.

Ageing is inevitable ,but it does not mean looking tired and feeling lifeless ,by eating healthy it can help us to stay fit and protect from diseases. 

 

Calcium and Phosphorus

· Just like vitamins, minerals are important for your body to stay healthy ,it uses minerals to keep a healthy bones, muscles, heart and for the brain to work properly, they also play an important role for making hormones and enzymes and for muscle contraction.

· Around 99% of the calcium in human body is found in the bones and teeth. Calcium continues to strengthen bones until they reach 20-25 years of age,which is when the bone density is high, as part of the aging process that after the bone density declines,calcium still continues to maintain bone and slows down the process of bone density loss.

· Phosphorus is a mineral that makes up 1 % of body's total weight, which is present in every cell of the body, most of it can be found like for calcium in bones and teeth.

· If people are not getting enough calcium in their diet, the body takes calcium from the bones to ensure normal cell function which can lead to weakened bones, as a person grows older the bone breaks down faster that it rebuilds, which can lead to osteoporosis, which is a risk for people over 50 years of age, which is more common for females after menopaused because of sudden decrease in estrogen.

· With phosphorus deficiency it may cause bone diseases such as rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. Improper balance of phosphorus may cause osteoporosis.

· Good Sources of calcium includes milk products, soymilk, orange juice, cereal and tofu. Greens vegetables such as broccoli, kale and turnip greens(spinach is not included).Phosphorus sources includes milk products, meat, fish, poultry and eggs.

· Treatment may include supplements for both calcium and phosphorus deficiency, some medication prescribed by you physician and therapy for osteporosis .