Prepared by
Melissa Brener, MS

If you do choose to take a vitamin supplement, make sure it does not contain more than 50-150% of the RDA for vitamins A, D, E, C, folate, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, B6 and B12.

Table of Contents for Vital Vitamins Introduction What You Will Learn Food Guide Pyramid Review What Are Vitamins? The Fat-Soluble Vitamins The Water Soluble Vitamins Do You Need a Vitamin Supplement? Summary Web Sites to Visit Review questions Back to Nutrition Curriculum Lessons

Click here for the printable (Word) version of the lesson

Do You Need a Vitamin Supplement?

A healthy person who eats a diet based on the Food Guide Pyramid probably doesn't need a vitamin supplement. However, certain types of people could benefit from extra vitamin supplementation. These groups include:

• Pregnant or breast-feeding women.
• People consuming very low-energy diets.
• Some vegetarians.
• People with certain medical conditions.
• People taking certain types of drugs.

If you do choose to take a vitamin supplement, make sure it does not contain more than 50-150% of the RDA for vitamins A, D, E, C, folate, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12.

Summary

Vitamins are a necessary and important part of our daily diets. Without vitamins, many processes that happen in your body would not work as well or may not work at all. Research has come a long way in discovering vitamins and their purpose in our body. We can take advantage of this research and consume the vitamins we need in the proper amounts. There are two main types of vitamins, fat-soluble and water-soluble. The fat-soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E and K. There are many more water-soluble vitamins, especially B vitamins. While everyone needs vitamins, not everyone needs to take vitamin supplements. This depends on your health and eating habits.

Web Sites to Visit

www.dole.com

www.mayohealth.org

www.eatright.org

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