Home
The Blog
Reviews
Essentials
Build Muscle
Burn Fat
Contact
About
Site Map

[?] Subscribe To
This Site

XML RSS
Add to Google
Add to My Yahoo!
Add to My MSN
Add to Newsgator
Subscribe with Bloglines
 



Benefits of Vitamins





How to actually use them




Do you know all the benefits of vitamins?

Some of them you might already know, and some might be new to you.

The real question is:


Do you know how to actually make use of these benefits?

The idea of explaining the benefits of vitamins might sound a little easier then it is. Quite often, people will list a benefit and expect others to automatically understand it.

Unfortunately, a lot of the time people read these benefits, and never fully grasp what is being said. This is especially true with health benefits.

For example, if I say, that vitamin B1’s main role in the body is to help convert blood sugar into glucose; the average person does not know what that means.

Also, people will read a list of benefits and stop there. Knowledge without action will get you nowhere when it comes to your health. You will need to know exactly how to make use of these benefits.

The purpose of this page on the benefits of vitamins is to have you fully understand what vitamins do in simple everyday English. Once you understand the benefits and how to use them, you can then make healthy choices.




When I think of vitamins, I vision diamond crystals getting sprinkled and absorbed throughout my body.

I know that might sound a little silly, but the reason for this is probably because I know the value of vitamins, and the long list of the benefits of vitamins.

Where do you currently stand? What’s the first thing you see when you think of vitamins?

I think there are people that say the words “benefits of vitamins” and draw a blank. They have no real understanding of what they do. Some might have a little more of an understanding, and vision some sort of molecule that is attached to food.

Others might have even more knowledge, and see a little army of vitamin soldiers working together to protect your body in different ways.

Whatever vision you might have, it’s always good to refresh your mind by fully examining the benefits of vitamins.

Let’s briefly look at each vitamin specifically. If you are just looking for a general overview of the benefits of vitamins then feel free to skim through this next section.

Here is the list of vitamins that are essential to your body.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin B

The vitamin B complex group used to be categorized as one vitamin. Further research showed that there are different vitamins within this group. Their chemical forms are different. The B vitamins are now classed as eight different essential vitamins: B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, and B12.

These vitamins help maintain and boost the rate of metabolism. Metabolism is the amount of calories your body breaks down to support itself. It is how your body uses the food you eat to grow, repair, and survive.

B vitamins improve the way your immune system and nervous system work. Your immune system is made up of little mechanisms that help your body by finding and killing bad cells. It is extremely important to keep this system running at peak performance.

Your nervous system is just as important. It is what makes your basic motor skills work. Without it, your five senses: sight, smell, taste, texture and hearing would not work.

These vitamins also help support the growth of red blood cells. Red blood cells are the main type of blood cell. They help bring oxygen to your muscles through your blood stream.

Lastly, the vitamin B complex group helps reduce stress, depression and cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer in America. Lack of B vitamins certainly plays a role in its development.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin C

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps fight off infections. It is important in the formation of collagen to hold skin cells together and other body tissues.

Collagen is a protein in the body that helps support the skin, bones, muscles and teeth. Vitamin C also helps with the treatment of blood pressure, male infertility and the common cold.

Vitamin C is probably the most popular vitamin. When you think of vitamin C, what's the first thing that pops in your mind? For me, its an orange, probably because many citrus fruits and drinks get labeled as having good sources of vitamin C.

Actually there's a quick story about oranges and vitamin C that I never knew about until recently....

Vitamin C helps and supports the formation of collagen. Like mentioned earlier, collagen is a protein that helps support tissues in your body and cell formation. It’s the main protein in your body that connects muscles and tissues.

When you lack the proper amounts of vitamin C, you can develop scurvy. When you get scurvy, you become pale, depressed, and blood spots form on your legs. In extreme cases, there are open wounds and your teeth fall out.

Ok, so back to the story…… Scurvy was very popular among sailors, pirates and soldiers out on the sea. In the old days they couldn’t store enough fresh fruit and vegetables on the boat.

One day, a British ship’s surgeon decided to start giving certain crew members oranges and lemons each day. He concluded that these citrus fruits actually prevented these crew members from developing scurvy. Later studies confirmed his findings.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin A

Vitamin A is another strong antioxidant. It helps support your skin, bone growth, eye sight, reproduction function and immune system.

It's probably best known for supporting your vision and skin. If you can recall when you're outside in the snow, and everything is very bright, and you come into the house and everything seems really dark. Well, vitamin A helps your eyes adjust to light changes.

This vitamin is also well known for keeping your skin healthy. It plays a key role in keeping your skin moist.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin D

Vitamin D is helpful in maintaining strong bones and teeth. It helps your body consume calcium, which is a very important mineral.

Almost half of women over the age of 50, will experience some sort of bone fracture due to a lack of calcium. I can remember when my mother broke her arm on her 54th birthday.

We were walking the dog after all the guests had left the party. Rosie, our little fox terrier, saw a squirrel and took off! It was the end of November and ice had just started to form on the sidewalk, and as Rosie pulled on the leash, my mother lost her balance and slipped on the ice.

I can remember helping her up, we didn't think she was seriously injured. She didn't even realize until later in the night that she had broken her arm.

We visited the doctor and found out she wasn't getting enough vitamin D and if she didn't start supplementing, ran the risk of getting osteoporosis. From that day on, my mother has never missed taking her vitamin D and calcium supplements.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin E

Vitamin E is another antioxidant. Its main role is to fight off damaging free radicals in your body. It also helps maintain your heart function, reproduction organs and helps keep your immune system strong.


The Benefits of Vitamins: Vitamin K

Vitamin K's key role involves enhancing bone density. You can think of it as a paste, or glue that sticks the calcium on your bones.

In American, cardiovascular disease kills more people than anything else. People can experience heart and artery failure when their arteries harden. Vitamin K helps prevent this hardening of the arteries.

There you have a few more reasons why, apart from just helping with our metabolism, vitamins are very important. If you don't get enough of these vitamins, you can be in serious risk of developing some health problems.


Why is supplementation needed to get all the benefits of vitamins?

One way to argue this point of having to take supplements to get all your vitamin needs would be to discuss convenience. When things are convenient and easy, they tend to make our lives better. For the most part, people don’t want to think about their health all the time.

Sure it’s important to set up a diet that meets your dietary needs, but I’d put money on it that most people don’t look at their meal right before they eat it and say: “Am I going to get all my vitamins?”

It’s not practical. In our fast passed society, people don’t have the time to make sure their meals will contain all the required vitamins. The “benefits of vitamins” get stored in people’s memories, and usually do not come out unless a health discussion arises.

Also, the big L word comes into play. It’s an easy excuse for people….Life got in the way…… I had a meeting I couldn’t eat lunch today…….The kids were running late, I missed breakfast…….I was stuck in traffic and was starving; I had to hit the drive through.

The benefits of vitamins are attainable for anyone…….through supplementation

Health supplements are convenient, customizable and make it consistent. When it comes to the benefits of vitamins, you must adhere to the three C’s. That’s really all you need. It’s not that hard. Master the 3 C’s and you got it!


So let’s check out what convenience is really all about

Convenience and vitamins……let me think. Ok, well, you just have to shallow the vitamins, everyone knows that. Wow that was easy. When it comes to convenience and a vitamin supplement, there’s only one way, consume them with your meals.

Now, it’s not quite over yet. There is a second part; it has to do with shopping. We know there’s no way around making the “eating” or “consuming” part of vitamin supplements any easier. You have to just shallow them with your food.

So how do you get those vitamins in your hand? You must have bought them from somewhere. Maybe you got them at your corner store, your pharmacy or perhaps you bought them over the Internet.

If you do it right, you can shop for vitamins once, and never worry about it again.

Here’s how it works. You find a good quality product, create a preferred customer account, and receive your vitamins every month.

As a side note, you usually get a discount when you sign up an account, and you can cancel anytime

When you shop for vitamins this way, you never have to worry about them again. Every month your vitamins arrive at your doorstep like clockwork.

Create your account, pick what supplements you want, and voila, you’re half way there. I can’t help you with the second part, you’re just going to have to remember to shallow them yourself :)

Bottom line, you need your vitamins coming to you. It’s much more convenient, and convenience makes our lives better!

The benefits of vitamins are only useful if you make them convenient to take advantage of. If you need to go out every month or so, and purchase new vitamins again and again, chances are you might forget, or you might feel like you don’t need to buy them this month. Unfortunately that is what happens a lot.

Missing out on your vitamin supplements for a period of time is bad news because consistency and the benefits of vitamins go hand and hand. They’re like two peas in a pod.


Consistency and your vitamin supplement, what it means to you!

Once you’ve mastered the convenience part, you’re almost there. Being consistent in taking your vitamins is much easier when they arrive at your doorstep every month. All you have to do is take them with your breakfast and dinner.

You can’t take advantage of the benefits of vitamins if you only take them once and awhile. If you had a chance to read over the long list of benefits, most of those are needed everyday. Unlike an energy drink, where you drink it just when you’re tired and need a boost, vitamins are essential for everyday life.

They need to be consumed daily. Vitamins are not stored in your body for a long time. They get flushed out on a regular basis. To stay healthy they must be replenished everyday. I can’t really make that anymore clear.


Customize your vitamin needs

The benefits of vitamins are quite large. There are many vitamins and they each do specific things. No matter who you are, you will benefit from an all round multivitamin. Quality matters! Those cheap ten dollar tubs of 500 vitamin pills are a waste of your money.

As a good foundation, everyone should be taking a high quality multivitamin supplement. But there are other specific products that specialize in certain areas.

You can customize your health needs through different products. There are quality vitamin supplements that help with a variety of areas.

You have a unique health profile. To take advantage of the benefits of vitamins you need to find an extensive selection of state-of-the-art nutritional products that enable you to customize your nutritional program to meet your individual needs.

We all have individual nutritional needs, and these change as we progress through life.

I encourage you to contact me personally.

I’ll be glad to make some recommendations for you :)



Back to top of Benefits of Vitamins

Back to Essential Health Supplements

Back to Vitamin Main Page

footer for benefits of vitamins page