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Additional notes and commentary by SphynxCatVP...
The bulk of the information in the following list is taken from a book
called The New Professional Chef,
and published by the Culinary Institute of America - if you can find a
copy, I highly recommend buying it! (Mine's old - 1991 - but still very
VERY useful) It's not just a cookbook, it also teaches you about kitchen
sanitation and hygiene, the various kinds of food poisoning, it goes into
detail about the different kinds of cooking oils and the pros and cons
of each, and lots and lots and LOTS of other good stuff. This is essentially
a professional chef's handbook on HOW to be a professional chef.
I have added additional notes (solubility and the additional notes under
vitamin C, for example) as I have run across it in my additional research.
I don't believe in taking chances with my health, and don't think anyone
should take chances with theirs, so this will be updated as I add new
information.
Disease links link to information on the E-Medicine
site where possible, or to a lengthy blurb at the bottom of this page
if I can't find it there. If you're medically trained or have sufficient
knowledge of "medical-ese", you can do a search for the info
in the Merck
Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy as well.
Be aware that the diseases listed under "deficiencies" are not
necessarily a complete list! This is just from what's in the book I'm
pulling the vitamin list from. If you do a search for <the vitamin
in question> + deficiency through Google
or the Merck
Manual you'll come up with a list of enough other deficiency related
ailments that it will probably scare you. :) Also be aware that "RDA"
is "Recommended Daily Allowance" - which is usually the
minimum needed to avoid a deficiency disease or ailment, assuming otherwise
optimum health. Some vitamins you can do better - thrive, rather than
survive - with more (the water soluble vitamin C, for instance, is not
stored in the body, so taking several hundred - or even a few thousand
- mg a day won't hurt, even if most doctors say it won't help either.
I've found doing this shortens the duration and reduces the severity of
colds.) Some fat soluble ones you run into problems if you have too much.
It's a delicate balancing act to get enough vitamins to thrive without
getting too much of the ones that cause problems in excess.
If I have found more current info on RDA amounts from the online resources
I've used, I will make a note for "updated from <source>"
with the updated information instead of just using in the book, because
the book is 10 years old.
You also might find information on vitamin/mineral supplemental dose
limits @ DoctorYourself
to be of interest.
- Vitamin: A - Retinol - fat soluble
(stored in the body)
The Beta Carotene form is safe - it is converted into Retinol by the
body as it needs it, the rest is flushed.
- RDA: 5,000
I.U. (Information updated from emedicus)
- Sources: Liver,
carrots, sweet potatoes, green leafy vegetables, egg yolk, milk
fat
- Function:
Building of body cells, bone growth, healthy tooth structure, normal
vision in dim light
- Deficiencies:
Night blindness
- Overload: Joint
pain, nausea, rashes. (See also Vitamin
A Toxicity)
- Vitamin: B1 - Thiamine - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: Men 1.4mg,
Women 1.0mg
- Sources: Pork,
liver legumes, fresh green vegetables
- Function:
Carbohydrate metabolism, maintaining healthy nerves, normal appetite
- Deficiencies:
beri-beri
- Stability:
Destroyed by heat and water
- Vitamin: B2 - Riboflavin - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: Men 1.7mg,
Women 1.5mg
- Sources: Milk,
liver, lean meats, eggs, leafy vefetables
- Function:
Breakdown of fatty acids for energy, release of energy from food
- Deficiencies:
pellagara sine pellagra - rare, except
in alcohol abusers
- Stability:
Destroyed by UV rays and flourescent lights, but stable in heat
and acid
- Vitamin: B3 - Niacin - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: Men 18mg,
women 14-18mg
(Safe at up to at least 3 grams, although
you may experience a warm flush depending on the form. ~Sphynx)
- Sources: Seeds,
yeast, bran, peanuts (especially with skins), wild rice, brown rice,
whole wheat, barley, almonds, and peas. Tryptophan is found in protein
foods (meat, poultry, dairy products, fish). Turkey and milk are
particularly excellent sources of tryptophan.
- Function:
Carbohydrate metabolism
- Deficiencies:
Pellagara
- Stability: ???
- Overload: Liver
damage, skin rashes, peptic ulcer
- Notes:
Tryptophan is converted by the body to Niacin. Tryptophan is
found in milk, as well as famously large amounts in turkey.
- Vitamin: B6 - Pyridoxine - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: 2 to 2.2mg
- Sources: Meat,
liver, whole grain cereals, vegetables
- Function:
Aids in synthesis of nonessential amino acids, fat and carbohydrate
metabolism
- Deficiencies:
Convulsions, sideroblastic (iron overload) anemia, depression, nausea
- Stability:
Stable to heat, light and oxygen
- Vitamin: B12 - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: 3 micrograms
- Sources: Liver,
meats, milk, eggs (Only foods from animals)
- Function:
Growth, blood formation, amino acid synthesis
- Deficiencies:
Pernicious
anemia
- Stability:
Stable during normal cooking
- Vitamin: C - Ascorbic Acid - water soluble
(excess is flushed)
- RDA: 60mg
- Sources: Citrus
fruits, strawberries, cantaloupe, broccoli, cabbage
- Function:
Production and maintenance of collagen (base for all connective
tissue), healing, disease resistance.
- Deficiencies:
Scurvy
Also, smoking cigarettes seems to interfere with the body's absorption/use
of C.
- Stability:
Destroyed by oxygen and water, also by high heat/pasturization processes.
- Overload: Loose
bowels, a/k/a diarrhea or "the runs"
(The amount of vitamin C it takes to give
you loose bowels will vary depending on your state of health. If
you are sick, either severely or chronically, it will take a surprisingly
large amount compared to when you are truly healthy. I have successfully
taken large doses of Vitamin C - several thousand mililgrams per
day, over a long term period - with absolutely no harm whatsoever.
Feel free to take as much as you want. just slow down on the intake
if you start getting to the characteristic "loose bowels"
stage. After the loose bowels comes painful abdominal gas - it doesn't
kill you, you just feel awful. I haven't gone beyond this point.
~Sphynx)
- Vitamin: D
- RDA: Unknown
- Sources: Animal
fat, fortified milk, exposure to sunlight
- Function:
bone development (promotes the absorption of calcium and phsophorus)
- Deficiencies:
Rickets
- Overload: Hypercalcemia
- Stability:
Stable to heat, aging, and storage
- Vitamin: E - Tocopherol
- RDA: 10 I.U.
- Sources: Leafy
vegetables, egg yolk, legumes, vegetable oils, peanuts
- Function:
protects cell structure, antioxidant
- Deficiencies:
Mild hemolytic
anemia, spinocerebellar disease (affecting the cerebellum connected
to the brain; a common symptom is unsteadiness and clumsiness)
- Stability:
Destroyed by rancidity (when foods go rancid and spoil)
- Vitamin: Folacin -
Folic Acid
- RDA: 400 micrograms
- Sources: Green
leafy vegetables, liver, milk, eggs
- Function:
blood formation, amino acid metabolism
- Deficiencies:
Megaloblastic
anemia, diarrhea
- Stability:
Not stable in heat or oxidation
- Vitamin: K
- RDA: Unknown
- Sources: Cabbage,
leafy vegetables, liver, vegetable oils
- Function:
Essential for blood clotting
- Deficiencies:
Lack of
prothrombin (important in blood clotting)
- Overload: Jaundice
(Most visible symptom is obvious yellowing of the skin and eyes.)
- Stability:
Destroyed by strong acids, alkalis and oxidizing agents
- Mineral: Calcium
- RDA: 800mg
- Sources:Milk,
dairy products, canned salmon with bones
- Function:
bone and tooth formation, coagulation of blood, regulates muscle
contraction
- Deficiencies:
Osteoperosis
- Stability:
N/A
- Mineral: Iodine
- RDA: 150 micrograms
- Sources: iodized
salt, seafoods
- Function:
Necessary for the formation of thyroxine (a hormone of the thyroid
gland)
- Deficiencies:
Goiter
- Stability:
N/A
- Mineral: Iron (stored by the body)
- RDA: Men 10mg,
Women 18mg
- Sources: Liver,
meat, whole or enriched grains, green vegetables
- Function:
Essential for hemoglobin production, constituent of tissue cells,
transporting oxygen
- Deficiencies:
Iron-deficiency
anemia
- Overload: Iron
is stored by the body. Thus, men and women of menopausal age or
older can have problems with too much.
- Stability:
N/A
- Mineral: Phosphorus
- RDA: 800mg
- Sources: Milk,
poultry, fish, meats, cheese, nuts, cereals, legumes
- Function:
Energy exchange, buffer system
- Deficiencies:
unknown
- Stability:
N/A
- Mineral: Potassium
- RDA: Unknown
- Sources: Meats,
cereals, vegetables, legumes, fruits
- Function:Regulates
electrolyte and water balance (intracellular fluids), muscle contractions
- Deficiencies:
Unknown
- Stability:
N/A
- Mineral: Sodium
- RDA: Unknown
- Sources: Common
salt, some canned foods, salt-cured meats, pickles
- Function:
regulates electrolyte and water balance (extracellular fluid)
- Deficiencies:
Unknown
- Overload: Linked
to hypertension (high blood pressure)
- Stability:
N/A
Pellagara: (From Steven B. Harris on the Usenet
group [sci.med] )
"The word pellagra means "rough skin". When skin is subjected
to mechanical wear and tear and can't repair itself well, it acts like
a burn which cannot heal. You get an inflammatory response, redness, cracking
into deeper layers along stress lines, but no new tissues from dividing
fibroblasts. In niacin deficiency the outer layers of the skin don't come
off very well in these areas, and these dead layers act as a sort of protectant
for the areas under them, which remains cracked and reddened. That outer
layer is the part that feels rough. In riboflavin deficiency the electron
transport system in mitochondria still doesn't work and the cells still
can't respire aerobically, and you get all the same problems, but for
some reason I don't understand, the outer layers of the skin slough more
readily, so all the underlying damage and failure of repair is more easily
seen. Thus, pellagra without the roughness- pellagra sine pellagra."
[Back up to Riboflavin]
This site contains articles on various medical
topics; however, no warranty whatsoever is made that any of the articles
are accurate - and even if a statement made about medical matters is
accurate, it may not apply to you or your symptoms. These
medical articles are provided on a general informational basis only
- nothing on this site should be construed as an attempt to offer or
render a medical opinion or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine.
Even though the authors may be capable of
doing extensive research, it must be understood that neither SphynxCatVP,
nor the rest of the contributors, are doctors, despite the presence
of any books of the medical profession in the personal libraries of
any of the authors. Any such articles are thusly written, in part or
in whole, by nonprofessionals. Consequently, there is absolutely no
guarantee that any statement contained or cited in an article touching
on medical matters is true, precise, or up-to-date.
At best, you can use the article to strike
up a conversation with your doctor or other medical professional ABOUT
your symptoms, and share any concerns you may have for them to investigate.
The medical information provided by this site is of a general nature
and CANNOT legally be considered a substitute for the advice of a medical
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