Vitamins And Minerals For The Eyes

Vision is one of our most precious senses. One of the things that we can do daily to protect our eyes from harm is to be sure that each day we consume the recommended daily intake levels of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.

As with everything about our bodies, proper nutrition plays an invaluable role in keeping our eyes functioning as well as possible. There are certain nutrients that are known to be especially associated with ocular health.

Among these are the anti-oxidant vitamins. The eye, especially the lens and the retina, is particularly vulnerable to the effects of unchecked free radicals, which are a byproduct of oxygen, cellular processes and environmental contaminants. Anti-oxidant vitamins help to combat free radicals.

The primary anti-oxidant vitamins include Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E. in addition to their important action against free radicals, they promote healthy cells and tissues in the eye. Lutein and Zeaxanthin are two more valuable anti-oxidants that recent research has found to be especially effective in maintaining the health of the eyes.

In addition to the vitamins that promote ocular health, there are several minerals that have been determined to play a significant role in the health of the eye. Among these are zinc, selenium, manganese, and copper. Zinc is an important mineral that serves to regulate sight, smell and taste and the concentration of zinc in the eye is higher than any other part of the body.

One important function of zinc in relation to the eyes is its role in the regulation of the amount of Vitamin A, essential to eye health, from the liver. People who have a deficiency in selenium have been clinically shown to be more likely to suffer from cataracts.

Recent research into the influence of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients upon the health of the eye has turned up a good deal new information. This has led to the development of specialized dietary supplements designed specifically to promote ocular health. The early results of clinical trials concerning the halting and even reversal of macular degeneration and other age-related eye diseases via specialized nutritional treatments look very promising and research continues at a rapid pace.

Those seeking to benefit from dietary supplements designed to promote ocular health and healing should familiarize themselves with the most common vitamins and minerals in these supplements, doing the research to find out what both the optimum and the safest levels of these nutrients are. Consulting an eye care professional and a licensed nutritionist can be very helpful in planning the best dietary supplement regimen suited to individual dietary needs and health goals.

Making sure that you are achieving the recommended daily intake levels of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients is one of the best things you can do for all over health and well being. In terms of eye health, paying close attention to you daily nutrition can make a real difference in the quality of your vision and help to keep your eyes healthy and functioning well for a good, long time. When properly taken, dietary supplements can be a valuable part of any ocular health focused program.

Vitamin B5 Serves Many Important Functions To Keep Body And Mind

Vitamin B5 Serves Many Important Functions To Keep Body And Mind

Vitamin B5, also known as pantothenic acid, serves the body in many ways. It is a member of the nutritionally elite group of eight vitamins known collectively as the Vitamin B complex. This powerful group of vitamins has a role nearly every major body system and process. The Vitamin B complex serves to keep both body and mind functioning and in good health.

Vitamin B5, like all of the vitamins that form the B complex, is essential to the body’s ability to use the food it takes in as fuel for its myriad of processes, great and small. It works in the regular maintenance and repair of all bodily tissues, from the cellular level up. This makes it an essential part of the body’s efforts to fight the physical damage that excessive stress contributes to.

Vitamin B5 serves many important functions in the nervous system, especially in terms of nerve function and health. Among the contributions that Vitamin B5 makes to the nervous system is the production of neurotransmitters, which are important to the ability of the nerves to communicate.

Because of its important role in the growth and health of the hair and necessity to healthy skin, it is used frequently in a variety of cosmetic products. Vitamin B5, acting as a cofactor to other members of the Vitamin B complex and other nutrients, has an important role in the functioning of the adrenal glands and also serves to promote normal growth of the body, due to its role in hormone production throughout the body.

Deficiency in Vitamin B5 can have a variety of negative consequences for the body and the mind. Physical symptoms include fatigue, headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, weakened immune system, abdominal pain, neurological disorders, muscle weakness and cramps, increased insulin sensitivity, acne, digestive problems, and slow or retarded growth.

Mental symptoms of Vitamin B5 include depression, personality disorders and change, sleep disturbances, and insomnia, which generally makes most other deficiency symptoms feel much worse. In general, adults should have about 5mg of Vitamin B5 per day, with women increasing their daily intake to 6mg to 7mg while pregnant or breastfeeding. Children, depending on size and weight, should have about 2mg to 4mg of Vitamin B5 each day.

The importance of the Vitamin B complex to physical health and mental functioning cannot be overstated. For optimum performance of the body and the mind, including cognitive functions and emotional responses and stability, the standard recommended daily intake levels of these vitamins should be achieved every day. Because these are water-soluble vitamins, they are washed away daily with the urine and thus, the body’s supply of these essential nutrients must be renewed daily.

Nutritional supplements are a reliable and safe way to meet these important nutritional goals, provided that attention is given to the accepted limits of dosage. Too much of any nutrient can be toxic, and often can cause as much damage as having too little. The body is a delicately balanced system, and requires that balance to be maintained to function at its best.

Vitamin B1 In The Body And The Brain

Vitamin B1, also called thiamine, is one of the eight vitamins that make up the powerful Vitamin B complex. Like all of the B vitamins, this nutrient plays a great role in the health of the body and the health of the mind. Care should be taken to maintain the recommended daily intake levels of this essential nutrient, as the results of deficiencies can be devastating in nature.

Vitamin B1 serves many purposes in the body. It is an essential part of converting carbohydrates to energy, and necessary to the proper functioning of the nervous system, the heart and the musculature system of the body. Thiamine is very important to the brain, particularly in terms of emotional health and well being, as well as being useful for focus and concentration.

There are a variety of physical conditions and diseases associated with deficiencies in Vitamin B1. Symptoms include pain, numbness and tingling in the extremities, muscle weakness and a lack of physical coordination, particularly in the larger muscle masses that make up the leg muscles.

A deficiency in thiamine can cause enlargement of the heart, which can itself lead to congestive heart failure, and lung congestion. A severe deficiency in Vitamin B1 can lead to nerve damage, brain damage and even death. Mental symptoms associated with a serious lack of Vitamin B include fatigue, psychosis, and confusion.

These are a few serious diseases specifically associated with a deficiency of Vitamin B1, including the notorious beriberi disease. There are also two specific types of brain damage associated with severely low levels of Vitamin B1. One, Korsakoff syndrome, results in confusion and short term memory loss. Another, Wernicke’s Disease has symptoms that include vision disturbances and irregularities, an unsteady walk, and mental confusion.

Despite the obvious importance of Vitamin B1 to many of the body’s important functions, a great deal of people regularly fail to meet the recommended daily intake levels. Alcoholics are particularly vulnerable to being deficient in Vitamin B1, because alcohol ruins the B vitamins.

Illnesses that force bodily fluids from the body, such as chronic diarrhea, can deplete the body’s levels of thiamine, because it is a water-soluble vitamin and the body needs to have its supply renewed every day. There are also rare conditions that interfere with the body’s ability to use Vitamin B1 properly.

Dietary supplements are an affordable, safe and effective way to consistently meet the recommended daily intake levels of Vitamin B1. It is especially important, however, when taking supplements to use them with care and attention, because taking too much Vitamin B1 can cause adverse side effects and even serious health problems.

As with all substances, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. While there are certain health situations that do call for higher than average doses of this powerful B vitamin, high dosages should only be taken while under the direct care of a qualified health care professional. Like any other medication or dietary supplement, Vitamin B1 supplements should always be kept well out of the reach of children.