Vitamins Flashcards
What are the fat soluble vitamins?
A, D, E & K
Do fat soluble vitamins have to be consumed every day?
No, they are stored in fat
Which vitamin is considered to be the most important vitamin?
Vitamin A
What is the function of vitamin A?
Maintenance of bodily linings and skin
What are some symptoms of vitamin A deficiency?
Issues with skin or bodily linings, blindness, stunting of growth, issues with enamel forming cells on teeth
What is the function of vitamin D?
Helps the body to maintain calcium and phosphorus levels: helps kidneys to re-absorb phosphorus and calcium from waste, helps small intestine to absorb calcium and phosphorus from food
^these functions help to maintain bone integrity
What is the primary source of vitamin D?
It may be synthesized from cholesterol in the skin, synthesis is activated by sunlight
What are symptoms of vitamin D deficiency?
Rickets (children) and Osteomalacia (adults)
What are symptoms of Rickets?
Bone softening, weak bones, deformed bone stucture
What are some symptoms of Osteomalacia?
Bone softening, sponge-like bone structure
What are some functions of vitamin E?
Acts as an antioxidant, helps stabilize cell membranes, regulates bodily oxygen reactions, helps to protect double bonds from being destroyed in PUFAs
What are symptoms of vitamin E deficiency?
Reproductive issues, loss of sexual potency
What are sources of vitamin E?
Widely available from a normal diet
What are the functions of vitamin K?
Helps the liver to produce a protein, prothrombin, which helps with blood clotting, helps to maintain bone health
What is prothrombin?
A protein produced in the liver which helps with blood clotting. Vitamin K helps with its production
What are symptoms of vitamin K deficiency?
Issues with prothrombin production and blood clotting
What is Dicoumarol?
A blood thinning drug
What is Warfarin?
Rat poison (affects vitamin K to cause internal bleeding and death)
What do all water-soluble vitamins act as?
Coenzymes - subtances which bind to inactive enzymes to activate them
What is the first B vitamin? What is its function?
Thiamin (B-1). It is involved in carbohydrate metabolism as well as with ribose production (involved with RNA production)
What is a symptom of a Thiamin (B-1) deficiency?
Beriberi
What is beriberi?
A disease resulting from thiamin (B-1) deficiency which deals with an inability to extract energy from carbohydrates
Called the “morale vitamin”
thiamin (B-12)
What are sources of thiamin (B-12)?
lean pork, whole grains, enriched cereals
What is the second B vitamin? What is its function?
Riboflavin (B-2). It is involved with carbohydrate, protein and fat metabolism.
What are sources of Riboflavin (B-2)?
Milk, other calcium rich foods
Which vitamin is light sensitive?
Riboflavin (B-2)
What is the third B vitamin? What is its function?
Niacin (B-3). It is involved with carbohydrate, protein and fat metabolism as well as with making proteins and DNA/RNA.
What are sources of Niacin (B-3)?
Meat, liver, peanut butter
What are symptoms of a Niacin (B-3) deficiency?
Pellagra (4 D’s)
A toxicity in this vitamin results in flushing
Niacin (B-3)
What is pellagra?
A serious disease resulting from a niacin deficiency. Symptoms include dermatitis, dementia, diarreha and death
Which vitamin can be synthesized by intestinal flora as well as the protein, tryptophan?
Niacin (B-3)
What is the sixth B vitamin? What is its purpose?
Pyridoxine (B-6). It is involved with metabolism of proteins as well as with the conversion of glycogen into glucose.
What are sources of Pyridoxine?
Meat, potatoes, bananas
A toxicity in this vitamin causes numbness
Pyridoxine (B-6)
This is the B-vitamin without a specific number, what is its function?
Folate or Folic Acid. It is involved with the regeneration of cells as well as DNA production
What are sources of Folate or Folic Acid?
Oranges, leafy greens
Too much of this vitamin may mask a B-12 deficiency
Folate (Folic Acid)
What are symptoms of a Folate or Folic Acid deficiency?
Megaloblastic Anemia or Neural Tube Defects (NTDs)
What is Megaloblastic Anemia?
The development of overly large, immature blood cells which do not function properly
What are Neural Tube Defects (NTDs)?
Inadequate formation a fetus’s spinal cord during early stages of pregnancy
What is the function of vitamin B-12?
Involved with cell formation (red blood cell formation), helps to maintain neural myelin sheaths
What is the intrinsic factor? What is its function?
An enzyme present in the stomach. It helps the body to absorb vitamin B-12 from consumed food
What are sources of vitamin B-12?
Animal products (meat, seafood, milk)
Which vitamin is adequately stored for long periods of time in the liver?
vitamin B-12
What are symptoms of vitamin B-12 deficiency?
Megaloblastic Anemia or Pernicious Anemia (deadly anemia)
What is Pernicious Anemia (deadly anemia)?
A serious disease characterized by a loss of neural functioning
Processing of grains often removes which vitamins?
B vitamins
What consistently correlates with vitamin deficiency?
Alcohalism
