Vitamins and minerals are essential for health. However, there are worrying shortages of these nutrients in the UK.
Although a good diet should theoretically protect us from nutrient deficiencies, very few of us eat a good diet. Only 28% of Britons eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. People don’t follow government-sponsored guidelines for a healthy diet. In fact, evidence shows that less than 1% of the UK population follows all nine UK Eatwell recommendations, which is bad news for our health and diet.(1) including our food intake. In addition, more than half of our calories come from hyper-processed, often nutritionally depleted food.(2)
Many people, especially women, get less than recommended intake of essential nutrients such as B vitamins, calcium, magnesium, selenium, iodine, and iron and potassium. Multivitamin and multimineral supplements help increase nutrient intake, and those who use supplements are more likely to meet vitamin and mineral recommendations than those who do not.(3),(4)
Why do we need vitamins and minerals?
Here are just a few of the many reasons why our bodies need the right nutrients to fuel our bodies on a daily basis.
B vitamins
B vitamins make energy available to the body from food. They work together in the body and help reduce fatigue and exhaustion. Vitamin B12 is essential for the functioning of the nervous and immune systems; the formation of red blood cells and the synthesis of ribonucleic acid (RNA – essential for most biological functions, including transfer of genetic material) and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA – carries genetic information).
Folic acid
Folic acid is a B vitamin and is essential during pregnancy for the efficient development of the neural tube that forms the brain and spinal cord. Taking extra folic acid during the formation of the neural tube can reduce the chance that the baby will have a neural tube defect. Women are advised to take folic acid 12 weeks before conception and continue using folic acid supplements until the 12th week of pregnancy. Two thirds of women do not use folic acid supplements before pregnancy.(5) In addition, folic acid is necessary for the formation of red blood cells. Folic acid also promotes brain health, immune system function and helps reduce fatigue and exhaustion.
vitamin C
Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant, neutralizes free radicals and protects cells. Vitamin C is involved in the synthesis of collagen and other components of bone, teeth and capillaries. It helps the wound heal. It is also needed for the functioning of several enzymes and increases the absorption of iron in the intestines. Vitamin C may play a role in protecting against the flu. It also promotes normal energy metabolism and nervous system function and reduces fatigue and exhaustion.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D helps the body absorb and use calcium and phosphorus; which are necessary to maintain strong and healthy bones and teeth and other body functions such as heart and muscle function. Vitamin D is also important for blood clotting, the immune system and muscle growth, development and function. One in five Britons suffer from vitamin D deficiency.(6)
Calcium
Calcium is an essential mineral for building and maintaining healthy bones and teeth. Calcium also plays a role in the contraction of muscles, including the heart muscle; facilitates nerve transfers; participates in energy production and cell division and is used in the blood clotting mechanism. More than 20 percent of girls aged 11–18 and 10 percent of adult women have a lower nutrient intake reference value, or LRNI.
Magnesium
Magnesium is needed for the formation of many enzymes in the body that release energy from food. It is also vital for the nervous system, muscle movement and the formation of healthy bones and teeth. Magnesium also helps promote electrolyte balance and is needed for protein synthesis. Almost half (47 percent) of girls aged 11–18 and 11 percent of adult women receive less than the LRNI intake.
Selenium
Selenium is part of the antioxidant system. It protects the body’s cells from damage and helps maintain the body’s defense system. Selenium also works together with vitamin E and is a component of many enzymes. In addition, selenium promotes the formation of sperm, is important for thyroid function, immunity and helps keep hair and nails healthy. Low selenium intake is a serious problem. In total, 41 percent of girls aged 11–18, 46 percent of women of working age and 59 percent of older women have lower LRNI intake.
Iodine
Iodine is an essential trace element used to make thyroid hormones (thyroxine and triiodothyronine) that regulate our metabolism. Iodine is needed for normal growth and development – especially for the brain and central nervous system. It also promotes the function of the immune system and helps keep the skin healthy. Iodine is vital during pregnancy, but 28% of girls aged 11-18 and 12% of adult women have a lower LRNI intake.
Iron
Iron is necessary for the formation of hemoglobin in red blood cells. Hemoglobin is formed in the body all the time and is a substance in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. Iron also promotes normal energy metabolism, cognitive and immune functions, and reduces fatigue and exhaustion. Almost half of girls aged 11 to 18 and 25 percent of women aged 19 to 64 get iron below the LRNI, which increases the risk of iron deficiency anemia.
potassium
Potassium is important for the normal functioning of cells and helps keep the nervous system and muscles functioning as they should, as well as keeping blood pressure stable. 37 percent of girls aged 11–18 have an intake below the LRNI, and 24 percent of women of working age have a correspondingly low intake
Zinc
Zinc is an important part of many enzymes, some of which play a key role in the formation of new proteins – one of the processes involved in tissue growth. Zinc is needed to promote the growth of immune cells and to maintain hair, skin and nails. Superoxide dismutase (a powerful antioxidant enzyme that neutralizes potentially harmful free radicals) requires zinc. Zinc is also essential for reproduction. Almost one in five (18 percent) of 11–18-year-olds and 6 percent of adults get zinc below the LRNI value.
Omega 3 fish oils
Omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) play an important role in cells and generally have an anti-inflammatory effect compared to omega-6 fatty acids. DHA is especially concentrated in the cells of the brain and retina. It is needed for the health of the brain, eyes and heart and is especially important during the development of the baby. EPA is important for heart health. They are obtained from fatty fish (eg sardines, salmon, mackerel), but intake in the UK is low (56g per week for adults) compared to the recommended 140g per week.
Who benefits from dietary supplements?
A good diet should be recommended to achieve the recommended intake of nutrients. However, since there are deficiencies in the intake of vitamins and minerals, especially in women, a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement would be common sense to fill nutritional gaps.
Children 6 months – 5 months
The NHS recommends that pre-school children take vitamins A, C and D every day. This is especially important for children who eat rabies because they may be missing out on important nutrients.
Teenage girls
Research shows that teenage girls can struggle to meet their nutritional needs through diet (see above). Half of girls fall short of the recommended iron intake, and many may be deficient in magnesium and B vitamins, which are needed to maintain healthy skin and mood.
Women who are pregnant / trying to have a baby
A multivitamin and multimineral designed to supplement important nutrients such as folic acid is important for those trying to have a baby and during pregnancy. The baby gets all the nutrients first, so it is important to make sure that the mother gets enough nutrients for her own health.
Women in menopause
A good diet helps a woman’s body through hormonal changes, but a multivitamin can help support a woman’s health right now. Multivitamins and minerals are available, which have been developed especially for the needs of middle age.
Vegans
The NHS recommends that people following a vegan diet take a supplement containing vitamin B12. People following a vegan diet are also at risk of low intake of iron, calcium, iodine, selenium and zinc. They may be recommended vitamin B12/minerals to ensure that all vitamins and minerals are met.
Choosing a supplement
Choose a suitable multivitamin and multimineral according to your age and stage of life (e.g. children, pregnancy, over 50). Children need smaller nutrients and women planning pregnancy more folic acid and less vitamin A, for example vitamins.
Supplement stickers
The nutritional supplement labels list the ingredients contained in the product and indicate the portion of the NRV value (% NRV), e.g. vitamin C, 80mg, 100% NRV).
NRV is short for “Nutrient Reference Value”. NRV values have been set for 13 vitamins and 14 minerals for food labeling purposes, and are EU guideline levels for the daily amount of vitamins or minerals that an average healthy person needs to prevent deficiency.
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