Benefits of Vitamin B5, Sources and Deficiency

Vitamin B5 is also known as pantothenic acid. Its name is derived from the Greek word pantos meaning "from everywhere," as small quantities of pantothenic acid are found in nearly every food.

In its functional form, vitamin B5 gets combined with another small, sulfur-containing molecule to form coenzyme A (or CoA). This conversion allows vitamin B5 to participate in a wide variety of chemical and organic reactions. Coenzyme A is needed to carry out various metabolic functions, and for the generation of energy in the form of ATP from fats, carbohydrates and proteins.

Roger J. Williams, the discoverer of pantothenic acid suggested that Vitamin B5 might be helpful in the management of certain medical disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Functions of Vitamin B5 –

* Vitamin B5 is also known as the anti-stress vitamin at times. It is one of the eight water soluble B complex vitamins.
* Vitamin B5 helps production of the cellular antioxidant glutathione, and is therefore an essential vitamin for all life forms.
* Helps in the break down carbohydrates, proteins and fats for energy - thus a stamina enhancer.
* This vitamin plays an important role in production of adrenal hormones in the adrenal glands.
* Vitamin B5 helps to produce neurotransmitters, cholesterol required for proper nerve and muscle performance.
* It is also responsible for haemoglobin production and metabolism of toxins by the liver.
* It plays an important role in cell division, DNA reproduction and RNA transcription.
* It regulates the formation of stress hormones and hair pigmentation.

Deficiency of Vitamin B5 –

It is an unlikely that an adult will have a deficiency of vitamin B5 because of the availability of B5 in many foods, plus the fact that it is also produced by our intestinal bacteria.
However, a deficiency of Vitamin B5 causes fatigue, muscle weakness, personality changes, psoriasis, and headache. Vitamin B5 is often used to treat the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, edema, swelling, pain, and stiffness in joints.

Pantothenic acid is also recommended to prevent stress and relieve insomnia, arthritis, food intolerance and teeth grinding.

Oral application of pantothenic acid helps relieve many skin problems and cure wounds.

Who are at risk of Vitamin B5 deficiency?

* Women who are on birth control pills are recommended to take extra doses of Vitamin B5.
* Smokers and alcoholics also fall under this category.
* People undergoing stress, prone to allergies or eating too many refined foods might develop a shortage of this vitamin.

Symptoms of Vitamin B5 deficiency –

· painful & burning feet
· skin abnormalities
· numbness and poor coordination
· abdominal and muscle cramps
· vomiting
· anaemia
· insomnia and depression
· stunted growth
· restlessness

Most of these symptoms and signs get resolved with external administration of pantothenic acid.
Vitamins B12, folic acid and biotin are required for proper use of vitamin B5 in the body's biochemical activities. In addition, vitamin C somewhat helps prevent B5 deficiency.

Dosage of Vitamin B5 –

Since deficiency of pantothenic acid is rare, so there is no recommended daily intake for this vitamin. Pantothenic acid is mostly included in B-complex multivitamins. The RDA for men is 10 mg and women is 8 mg.

Normal daily intake of pantothenic acid for adults is 4 to 7 milligrams. Vitamin B5 should be taken with water, preferably after eating.

Pantothenic acid does not usually cause any side effects, but pregnant and lactating mothers should be careful to consume only the normal daily intake.

Vitamin B5 can be found in multivitamins, B complex vitamins, or sold individually under the name of pantothenic acid and calcium pantothenate. It is available in a variety of forms including tablets and capsules, and must be taken under medical supervision.

Dietary sources of Vitamin B5 -

The term pantothenic acid is derived from the Greek word pantos, meaning everywhere. Vitamin B5 is widely distributed in plant and animal food sources, where it occurs in both bound and free forms.
Pantothenic acid is richly found in peanuts, liver, kidney, cauliflower, mushrooms, seeds and other nuts, pumpkin, mushrooms, legumes, sweet potato, milk, soya, cheese, egg yolk, fish, chicken, wholegrain bread and cereals, and bananas. The richest sources of the vitamin are the ovaries of cod and tuna fish.
Breakfast cereals are also a good source if they have been fortified with pantothenic acid.
Do not add soda to the water used for cooking vegetables - it will destroy the pantothenic acid.

Vitamin B5 storage –

Vitamin B5 is relatively unstable in food, and significant amounts of this vitamin can be lost through cooking, freezing, and commercial processing.
Vitamins are easily destroyed and washed out during food preparation and storage. Store vitamin supplements at room temperature, in a dry place that is free of moisture.

By: Tom alter

Article Source: http://www.articlewheel.com

Calcium, What's The Big Deal?

The big question about Calcium, exactly what is Calcium and why is Calcium so important to you and I?

What is Calcium?

Calcium is one of the most abundant micro-nutrient found in our body. 99% of our body’s total calcium is stores in the bones and teeth. The remaining 1% of calcium is then found throughout our body in blood, muscles, and the fluid in between cells. Calcium is also needed for muscle contraction and the secretion of hormones and enzymes. There are much more usage of Calcium, but to put simply, Calcium is important for Bone repair/formations and the contraction of muscles. Calcium is also the answer to strong and dense bones.

Different Types of Calcium, Which is Best?

Calcium is an element and it comes in various forms. There’s Calcium citrate, Calcium phosphate, Calcium Gluconate, Calcium Carbonate, and e.t.c. The list can go on and on, but which is the most common one that is best absorbed by the body?

There is something called the elemental weight. Calcium phosphate has an elemental weight of 31-38% whilst Calcium carbonate has an elemental weight of 40%. Let’s use Calcium Carbonate (Most common form of Calcium found in the market) as an example, if you take 500mg of Calcium carbonate, only 200mg of elemental Calcium is available for absorption. I’ll make things simpler by giving you an analogy; let’s presume that you’re now going down to the fuel station to pump some petrol for your car. There are 2 types of Petrol and both are mixed with water. For every liter of petrol, Petrol X contains 20% petrol whilst Petrol Y contains 40% petrol. We do know that cars require petrol to move and not water. So the obvious choice will be Petrol Y. The same goes to us, our body can only utilize elemental Calcium, and therefore, Calcium Carbonate is one of the better choices of Calcium supplements to take.

Vitamin D & Calcium Absorption
Taking Calcium alone is not as effective taking calcium with a good dose of Vitamin D. Vitamin D helps improve Calcium absorption. To put things simply, let’s imagine things this way. Before calcium is absorbed by our body, it needs go through a door which is locked and requires a key to open it. Vitamin D is the key to opening this door to allow calcium into your body and from there allows the body to utilize the Calcium.

What NOT to Consume Calcium With
We should not be consuming Calcium with Zinc and Iron. This is so as our body prioritizes Calcium over the other two minerals. I advise you to take Zinc and Iron at a time when your body has little Calcium, preferably 30mins-60mins after drinking your milk. When purchasing multivitamins, do also look at the Nutrition fact sheet to see if any of this minerals are stashed together.

How much Calcium is Needed?
If you’re just an average adult, I would recommend taking anything from 800mg – 1200mg of Calcium a day. However, if you’re an athlete or bodybuilder, you should be taking up to 2000mg – 2300mg of Calcium a day. Good sources of protein include Milk, yoghurt, cheese. Taking more than 2500mg of Calcium may cause you to get wet stools.

Benefits
Calcium will help you maintain a healthy bone mass, delay the onset of osteoporosis and recent research articles have also shown that Calcium aids weight loss.

By Darcy Dal

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Darcy_Dal

Vitamin C -- The Most Famous of Vitamins!

By David Leonhardt

We call Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, "the most famous of vitamins" because it really is the best known. It is the first one schoolchildren learn. It is the most cited cure for the common cold. Most people can rhyme off at least a few foods that contain vitamin C. And vitamin C is the single most searched nutrient on the Internet.

HISTORY OF VITAMIN C: Nobel Prize winning biochemist Dr. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi first isolated vitamin C in 1928. (As someone of Hungarian descent, I find this a touch exciting.)

Vitamin C first got its reputation for beating the common cold in 1970, when fellow Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling published his bestselling book "Vitamin C and the Common Cold". In it, he suggested that taking vitamin C at levels well above the USA RDA (now 60 milligrams per day) could strengthen the immune system and help ward off the common cold.

BENEFITS OF VITAMIN C: Vitamin C helps form collagen, a glue-like fibrous protein in bone, cartilage, tendons and other connective tissue. Vitamin C helps give structure and maintain such body parts as bones, cartilage, muscle, veins, capillaries and teeth.

But recent studies have also linked "adequate dosages" of vitamin C to preventing a number of common cancers, of helping boost the nervous system, of prolonging life, of reducing the risk of heart disease, of softening the symptoms of respiratory diseases such as asthma and cystic fibrosis, and of keeping skin and glands healthy.

SOURCES OF VITAMIN C: Most animals manufacture their own vitamin C. Primates, such as humans, gorillas, and monkeys, have somehow lost this ability.

Which is why we need to get our vitamin C from our diets.

It is well known that citrus fruits, such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, tangerines, limes, mandarins and others contain vitamin C.

In fact, vitamin C comes almost exclusively from fruits and vegetables.
Other good sources are tomatoes, strawberries, raspberries, broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, peas, rutabagas, cantaloupe, kiwi, papayas, potatoes and watermelon.

One place that is NOT a good source are vitamin C pills, which the body just cannot absorb properly. This is a water soluble vitamin best taken in its natural juice or in a liquid supplement (or both!).

OPTIMUM USAGE OF VITAMIN C: Fortunately, if you consume too much of a water soluble vitamin, your body will get rid of excess. It also means that your body does not store it for long periods of time. You can't "stock up" on it, and you can reach a saturation point quickly; you need vitamin C several times a day.

Being a water-soluble vitamin, you lose it when you boil foods. For instance, if you boil your broccoli, you will lose the vitamin C. However, if you boil your broccoli in a soup, you will get the broccoli's vitamin C in the broth.

Do not soak or store fruits or vegetables in water, for you can lose the vitamin C that way. In short, the fresher cut the fruit or vegetable, and the less cooked, the more vitamin C you will get.

Like all vitamins and minerals, Vitamin C is most effective when combined with other nutrients. For example, one of the big benefits of vitamin C is that it helps the body digest and absorb iron, an essential mineral for good health.

It has also been found that vitamin C and E work together to help stave off Alzheimer's disease.

This is one of the reasons it is so important to take vitamin supplements that contain as many different nutrients as possible, so the body can absorb them together and enjoy the maximum benefits from each one.

VITAMIN C DOSAGE: Most experts agree that the US RDA is only a fraction of what it should be, and that daily vitamin C levels up to 1,000 or even 2,000 milligrams per day are safe and healthy.

Essential Nectar contains 250% of the US RDA, mixing it with 233 other natural, plant-based nutrients...making it a good vitamin C supplement for your diet.

Article Source:http://www.article-search-online.com