Fruits are truly filled with vitamins necessary in the diet and are a good source of minerals, and fiber as well. Every person suggests eating fruits during unhealthy conditions and it provides necessary vitamins that help to fight against germs or foreign antigens. High-vitamin fruits also reduce a person’s weakness, and diseases and make the body healthy.
In this blog, you will know about nutrition and why are vitamins necessary in the diet of the body. Moreover, you will also know a variety of health benefits of some fruits which we will discuss in that blog.
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Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a fat-dissolved nutrient so we can use it later when the body requires it. Vitamin A stored in the Liver as retinyl esters. Vitamin A is especially crucial for vision, skin, and bones. Also known as retinol (because it produces pigment in the retina of the eye).
Surprisingly, Vitamin A is found only in animal foods or products like meat, dairy products, etc. Eventually, plants provide carotenoid – orange and yellow pigment as a source of vitamin A to the animals. On Eating animal products, we get preformed Vitamin A.
Second is beta-carotene, the molecule found in some foods of plant origin that gives carrots and squash their yellow-orange color and is converted to vitamin A in the body. On eating carrots papaya, and mangoes, we obtained pro-vitamin A.
Note: Carrots and papaya are rich sources of antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin A, and dietary fibers also.
The function of Essential Vitamin A includes:
- Defense against infection
- Better vision in dim light
- Keeps body healthy
Sources of Vitamin A
- Cheese
- Carrots
- Milk and yogurt
Vitamin C
Lemons are rich in vitamin C (ascorbic acid), fibers, and plant compounds essential for pushing or promoting the immune system, helping in digestion, and health benefits. It contains around 30-50 mcg of vitamin C which is necessary for daily life.
Note: People are often confused with ascorbic acid and citric acid because of their quite similar names and sources. Moreover, both have quite similar structures but ascorbic acid and citric acid are different. Ascorbic acid is vitamin C and citric acid is an acidic antioxidant.
Vitamin C is an antioxidant. It is important for your skin, bones, and connective tissue. It can prevent or delay the damage in cells and promotes healing and helps the body absorb iron. Without antioxidants, free radicals can cause serious health problems even death too.
Unlike Vitamin A, Ascorbic acid or Vitamin C is a water-soluble compound and it is not stored in the body.
Vitamin D
Our body generates vitamin D naturally in the skin when we direct contact with sunlight. During exposure to sunlight, 7-dehydrocholesterol present in the skin absorbs UV B radiation from the sunlight and is converted into vitamin D3. If we consider Vitamin D as a hormone, it would be more correct rather vitamin because vitamin D is released from the body. You can also get vitamin D from certain foods and supplements to ensure adequate levels of the vitamin in your blood.
Functions of Vitamin D
Absorption of calcium and phosphorus: calcitriol, a hormone, is an activated form of vitamin
D. It acts with two other hormones (the parathyroid hormone and the thyroid hormone
calcitonin) and stimulates the absorption of calcium and phosphorus in the small intestine.
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