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Calorie Counting an introduction to Calorie Counting by David Bush |
Vitamins and Minerals are used to make your body work properly. If Calories are the energy for your body, then Vitamins and Minerals are raw substances your body uses to regulate and direct the energy. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommendations vary depending on your sex and age. All the "percent USDA" or "percent RI" values you see on foods are for an average person. If you want a more accurate appraisal of your vitamin and mineral needs, see the Do-It! Vitamin profile screen (bring up the Graphs screen, and Vitamin/Mineral display). This will show you the vitamins that you need based on your sex and age, not the "average" values. Too Little Vitamin Deficiencies are diseases or general breakdowns of your body that occur when you do not get a specific vitamin or mineral. Have you ever heard of Scurvy? It was a disease that sailors used to get from being at sea for long periods without fresh fruits or vegetables. It was caused by a lack of Vitamin C over the course of many months. Sailors found that by taking lime juice a few times a week, the disease could be avoided. Too Much Too much of a vitamin can also have a destructive effect. If you take too many supplements, you can risk an overdose of Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, or Vitamin D. It is pretty difficult to have a vitamin overdose from eating normal food, however if you gorge daily on large platters of liver and kidneys, or take 4 times the USDA of a vitamin, you might run into trouble. How much do you need? The USDA publishes a recommended daily allowance and intake for a number of vitamins and minerals. The Vitamin Profile screen in Do-It! shows you what these values are for your sex and age. Most doctors recommend a 1 a day type of vitamin supplement. There is much ongoing research about vitamins, and especially anti-oxidants. If you want to know what the current research says, or would like to take higher levels of vitamins (more than 100% USRDA), talk with your doctor. As a rule of thumb, if you are getting the vitamins and minerals from food or from a 1 a day, you will do fine; just watch those supplements and read their labels. If the label says the supplement contains more than 100% of the USRDA, talk with your doctor. A Little Extra In addition, there are known health benefits (for women) to taking extra Calcium, Vitamin B9 (Folate/Folic Acid), and Iron. If you are a woman, talk to your doctor or nutritionist about these!!
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