Categories: Healthy Living

Fat Soluble Vitamins Foods for Better Health

Fat-soluble vitamins are the vitamins that are stored in your body [liver and fatty tissues to be precise] for a longer period of time, unlike water-soluble vitamins that require constant replacement.

This includes vitamin A, D, E, and K.

That being said, the basic thrust of this article is to reveal to you top fat soluble vitamins foods you should start eating now for better health.

Ready…?

Let’s get started…

Fat – Soluble Vitamins and the Best Sources to Get Them

1. Vitamin A

Vitamin A is among the fat soluble vitamins the body needs to function properly. There exist 2 major forms of vitamin A, namely pre-formed and provitamin A.

Pre-formed vitamin A is typically found in animal tissue and supplements/pills while plant foods [vegetables and greens] are the basic source of Provitamin A.

– Benefits: Vitamin A plays significant role in the proper functioning of the human body. Part of these roles is that it helps to maintain good vision, strengthen the immune system, boost reproductive system, stimulate bone growth, promote healthy tooth.

Additionally, this particular vitamin offers a lot of benefits to the heart, lungs, and kidneys while it also prevents certain cancer types, macular degeneration, cataracts, to name but a few.

– Deficiency symptoms: When your body has less-than-required quantity of vitamin A, you may experience any of the following symptoms: night blindness, very dry/rough skin, severe measles, faulty tooth development, slower bone growth, lowered resistance to infections, etc.

– Toxicity symptoms: If you eat too much Vitamin A, you might experience changes in the skin (dryness), headache, nausea, reduced appetite, dizziness, nausea, coma, blurred vision, slowed growth, severe birth defects, muscle and joint pain, hip fractures, among others.

– Top Food sources of Vitamin A: Some of the best sources of Vitamin A are carrots, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, salmon, spinach, collards, mangoes, pumpkin, winter squash, dark green leafy vegetables, apricots, fatty fish, fortified milk, eggs (found in the yolk), broccoli, cantaloupe, tomato, beef, liver, pumpkins.

2. Vitamin D

Vitamin D is yet another potent fat soluble vitamin you need for better health. There are two major types of Vitamin D, namely D2 and D3.

Vitamin D2 can be derived from food sources such as egg yolk, cold-water fish, cereals, and fatty fish while D3 can only be sourced directly from the sun.

Mild exposure to ultraviolet light [ideally 10 to 15 minutes] is enough for your body to produce the D3, active form of vitamin D.

– Benefits: Vitamin D plays a critical role in the body, especially when it comes to calcium and phosphorous usage.

Part of the things it does in the body is to boost the amount of calcium that the small intestine absorbs, which in turn aids bone formation and maintenance.

That’s not all; vitamin D also helps to strengthen the immune system, regulate cell growth, shield against osteoporosis, keep blood pressure levels at check, prevent cancer, promote healthy teeth, support blood clotting, to name but a few.

– Deficiency symptoms: Depending on your age and other related factors, the ideal amount of Vitamin D per day is about 5-10 mcg.

However, studies reveal that having lesser amount of this vitamin could lead to certain cancer types, high blood pressure, rickets, osteomalacia (muscle and bone weakness), autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis (loss of bone mass), flattening of the back of the skull, etc.

That being said, it is equally important to let you know that some groups of people are more likely to develop vitamin c deficiency than the other, some of which includes exclusively breast-fed infants, people with dark pigmented skin, the aged, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and obesity patients.

– Toxicity: According to experts, the Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) for vitamin D is 100 mcg (4000 IUs) for people aged 9 years or above.

However, having excess of this vitamin in your body could result in certain side effects. For instance, it may lead to accumulations in your liver and produce signs of poisoning.

Similarly, vitamin D toxicity could cause excess calcium in the blood, retarded growth [mental and physical-wise], reduced appetite, vomiting, and the likes.

– Top Food sources of Vitamin D: Some of the best sources to get Vitamin D are as follows – fortified milk, cereals, egg yolk, fatty fish, sardines, salmon, fish oil pills, etc.

3. Vitamin E

Vitamin E is basically an antioxidant, and what it does in the body is to help combat the damaging effects of free radicals, which are associated with premature aging, inflammation, heart disease, cancer, and other serious health conditions.

– Benefits: Vitamin E is effective for slowing down the production of free radicals, boosts immune function, shields blood clots from forming inside the veins, prevents heart disease and cancer, reduces the risk of heart disease and Alzheimer’s Disease, protects red blood cells, vitamins A and C, as well as essential fatty acids from destruction, to name but a few.

– Deficiency symptoms: Vitamin E deficiency is a very rare condition. It can only occur in premature infants as well as people who can’t absorb fats.

Albeit, some of the common symptoms of vitamin E deficiency include muscle weakness, difficulty in walking, numbness and tingling, decreased vision, and weakened immune system.

– Toxicity: The recommended amount of vitamin E you need per day is 15 milligrams. Excessive Vitamin E might result in increased difficulty clotting blood, which could eventually trigger hemorrhaging [bleeding].

That’s not all; you may also develop nausea, intestinal cramps, blurred vision, fatigue and diarrhea – all as a result of having too much of vitamin E.

– Top Food sources of Vitamin E: You can get excellent amount of Vitamin E from leafy green vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, wheat germ, margarine, salad dressing, almonds, hazelnuts, fortified cereals, soybean, corn, cottonseed, safflower, extra virgin olive oil, asparagus, peanuts, oatmeal, etc.

4. Vitamin K

Vitamin K is very crucial to the body as it helps to aid blood clotting and reduce the risk of bleeding to death.

There exist 2 major forms of vitamin K, namely phyloquinone [K1] and menaquinones [K2] – both of which are found in plant foods and fish oils/meats respectively.

– Benefits: Vitamin K promotes quick wound healing, facilitates blood clotting, improves bone strength, promotes calcification in bones and teeth, improves bone density, reduces the formation of kidney stones, reduces the risk of heart disease, boosts testosterone levels in males, decreases bone loss, reduces the risk of fractures, and it also produces proteins for blood, bones, and kidneys.

– Deficiency symptoms: Vitamin K deficiency is rarely seen, but research has it that newborn infant and people whose body is unable to absorb fat [e.g. celiac disease and cystic fibrosis patients] are the most susceptible group.

The aftermath of Vitamin K deficiency is that your blood will not be able to clot properly and the slightest wound could even cause you to bleed unstoppably.

You are also at higher risks of having reduced bone density and fracture.

– Toxicity: Excessive amounts of vitamin K can lead to the breakdown of red blood cells and trigger liver damage.

– Top Food sources of Vitamin K: the dietary sources of vitamin K include Cabbage, eggs, milk, brussels sprouts, cabbage, spinach, broccoli, kale, peas, green beans, egg yolk, liver, turnip greens, cauliflower, soybean oil, cottonseed oil, canola oil, olive oil, etc.

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