Nowadays, we rarely have the opportunity to eat a healthy meal rich in vegetables and fruits. We are swallowing vitamins and minerals, often guided only by the price of a given complex.
- Can vitamins and mineral supplements improve sport performance?
- Do vitamins and minerals supplements work?
- What vitamins and minerals supplements should you take daily?
- Vitamins and minerals supplements side effects
- Are vitamins and minerals supplements necessary?
- Who should take vitamins and minerals supplements?
- „The best sources of vitamins and minerals are the products of plant origin”
- Which vitamins and minerals supplements to choose?
But is every preparation the same? Why do some cost $20 and the others $5? What vitamin complex should you choose?
All of this because of the assimilability of the products. The cheapest products contain only vitamins of synthetic origin, packed with colorings, often sugar etc. The products of this kind are supposed to help us supplement the deficits of vitamins and minerals in an optimal way for our organism.
With products that cost $5, Bioavailability due to cheap, only synthetic production processes is barely 15%!
Can vitamins and mineral supplements improve sport performance?
They surely can. We cannot look into every ingredient benefits, but saying that every one of the vitamins and minerals is crucial in our optimal performance, especially the sport performance.
As we say before, we would have to list every vitamin and mineral and write how it affects our performance, but we have already covered that in other articles. But just to give some examples:
- Vitamin D - Vitamin D is precursor for many hormones, which are crucial for androgens and estrogens metabolism. In result - optimal Vitamin D level determines for example optimal testosterone level. Also it is very important in dealing with osteoporosis, allowing our skeletal system to be at its maximum strength. And strong bones are important in steady progression in lifts.
- B Vitamins - B vitamins take part in energetic metabolism inside our body. And optimal energy level is certainly important in sport performance. Remember to look into your supplements composition and look for supplement with bioactive forms of B Vitamins
- Magnesium - magnesium takes direct part in muscles actions. It's also important in cellular communication and energy metabolism.
- Zinc - takes part in stabilizing and increasing testosterone level
- Potassium - potassium actions are similar for magnesium. If you ever met with muscle cramps, then supplementation with magnesium and potassium should be your first thing to do, to deal with them.
Do vitamins and minerals supplements work?
They definitely work, if you have deficencies of vitamins and minerals. There are people who say "Vitamins and minerals supplements are the waste of money" - no, they not. But you have to focus on word "supplement". Vitamins and minerals preparations are only an addition to healthy diet, training and basic healthy lifestyle principles. They will not do all the work for you.
So, firstly review your diet and actual possible vitamins and minerals deficiencies and basing on it choose your supplementation. Supplementation has to develop yourself, not give additional limitations and waste your money. Remember about that!
What vitamins and minerals supplements should you take daily?
Especially water-soluble vitamins (B vitamins and vitamin C), and basic electrolytes (magnesium, potassium, sodium). Those are the mostly used minerals and vitamins in your metabolism, and they cannot be stored inside your organism.
Fat-soluble vitamins can be supplemented less commonly, because its excessive amounts will be stored in your fat tissue, and relased from it when your organism notice any kind of deficiency.
Some minerals will also be relased with your other tissues, if your organism will meet any deficencies. For example, calcium will be released from your bones.
Vitamins and minerals supplements side effects
In terms of side effects, we have to outline one specific term. Hypervitaminosis is an pathological excessive amount of vitamins in our organism. In terms of water-soluble vitamins it's not a big deal, because it's excession will be excertet from our organism due to urinary system actions (one disclaimer here - alleged kidney stones due to vitamin C excessive supplementation is only half-true ). However, there is more problem with fat-soluble vitamins.
Fat-soluble vitamins are stored inside our organism, in fat tissue. Fat tissue is located mainly at abdomen, chest, face... and liver. And here we have our problem with hypervitaminosis and needed moderation in terms of supplementation.
Too high fat-soluble vitamins in fat tissue stored in our liver can be hepatoxic, which is confirmed by many clinical studies, and study cases. And it is the main danger from ill-conceived supplementation.
Too high minerals supplementation (there is not such term like hypermineralosis unfortunately, so we have to deal with that concept in that way) is more peculiar and depends on specific mineral. For example:
- Excessive salt (sodium) intake - can be the cause of excessive water retention and hypertension
- Excessive potassium intake - can be the cause of blood pressure issues
- Excessive calcium intake - can be the cause of hypercalcemia, which weakens your bones, and can be the cause of venous blockages inside your body
- Excessive iron intake - can be the cause of liver toxicity, due to heavy metal toxicity
In terms of rest minerals, deficiencies doesn't show any concrete symptoms, or are seen such rarely, that they are not tested yet.
Are vitamins and minerals supplements necessary?
No, they are not necessary, just as every supplement. Supplement has to be.... supplement deficencies. So if you are completly sure that your diet meets your vitamins and minerals requirements... Then you can go on without such supplements.
Who should take vitamins and minerals supplements?
Everyone who feel like vitamins and minerals deficencies can be their problem. Due to monotonous and not fully tested diet, especially at the start of the healthy lifestyle interest is the most popular cause of dietary deficencies. So, if you are not absolutely surely, that your diet meets every vitamin and mineral requirements, then you should consider supplementation with vitamins and minerals supplement.
„The best sources of vitamins and minerals are the products of plant origin”
This is true, but it is easy to write about it and hard to do it, as not everyone has enough time and knowledge to be aware of what products to eat and in what quantities.
By eating 100 g of carrot a day, we will satisfy the daily needs for vitamin A, however, in order to provide the appropriate amount of magnesium, we would have to eat half a kilo of spinach or 300 g of beans a day.
Vitamin preparations is not only cutting corners. They are often very helpful in extreme situations:
- monotonous diet, lack of vegetables, trace amounts of fruits and vegetables
- in elderly age gastric problems disenabling to eat appropriate amounts of vegetables, mainly cauliflower, spinach or broccoli.
- winter period means huge impoverishment of our diet, there are much fewer vegetables on the market and we usually do not remember about them…
- infections and diseases, in diarrhea, high fever, when we are not able to eat anything, there are huge vitamin deficits in the organism,
Which vitamins and minerals supplements to choose?
We have been existing as a company mz-store.com on the market of functional foods and supplements for 15 years. During this time, we have seen the choices of our clients - the conscious choices. Therefore, we decided to share the information, which preparations are most frequently bought because of their bioavailability and quality.
