Living Well — live well

Part 2: Minerals - Learn What Foods Give You the Best Source 0

In part 1, we discussed the different vitamins and how to incorporate them into your diet by choosing the best food sources. This time around, we’re looking at the minerals out there and how you can maximize your intake by following our list of foods for each category. Did you miss Part 1: Vitamins? You can check it out right here. Again, just like last time, in order to provide you with the ultimate best food choices, to make our list the food sources had to provide at least 50% of the dietary reference intake (per the USDA) in one serving. Take a look at part 2!

Minerals

Calcium

Why you need it—it makes our bones strong! 99% of our body’s calcium content can be found in our bones and teeth. What may not be so well-known is that it also aids in our blood’s pH balance and muscle and nerve function. Where you can get it—yup, you guessed it, milk! But this is where it gets a little tricky, since some milk, and enough of it, can provide you with your daily needs of calcium, but also note that you can get your calcium from types of tofu as well!

Copper

Why you need it—it works together with iron to form red blood cells, so consuming foods high in copper can help with anemia. Although many people do not get enough copper in their diet, it is rare to be truly deficient. Where you can get it—seafood, such as oysters, red meat, sunflower and sesame seeds, tempeh, garbanzo and soybeans, cashews, shiitake mushrooms, lentils, and walnuts.

Fluorine

Why you need it—protect your teeth from decay. Where you can get it—fluorinated water as well as tea leaves.

Iodine

Why you need it—it is essential for the production of thyroid hormones in producing energy, with the thyroid gland containing about 70-80% of your body’s iodine at any given time. Where you can get it—sea vegetables (seaweed), scallops, cod, iodized salt, and yogurt.

Iron

Why you need it—it is responsible for carrying oxygen-rich blood to your cells and has a role in producing the body’s energy source (ATP). Where you can get it—red meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, soybeans, and fortified breakfast cereals.

Magnesium

Why you need it—it’s important for proper organ function, especially the heart, muscles and kidneys, and in addition helps activate enzymes and regulate levels of other minerals throughout the body. Where you can get it—pumpkin seeds, spinach, Swiss chard.

Phosphorus

Why you need it—about 80% of your body’s phosphorus content lies in the bones and teeth, so it too plays a strong role alongside calcium, and in addition helps filter out waste in the kidneys. Where you can get it—a good rule of thumb is looking for protein-rich foods, so try scallops, sardines, soybeans, pumpkin seeds, cod, tuna, salmon, lentils, and shrimp.

Potassium

Why you need it—we need this mineral for proper digestive and muscle functioning, and in addition low levels of potassium have been linked to high blood pressure. Where you can get it—yes, we all know bananas have potassium, but there are some other food sources richer in potassium that might surprise you. While there isn’t one food source that will give you all your daily potassium needs in a single serving, you can still get a good amount from beet greens, lima beans, Swiss chard, potatoes and sweet potato, spinach, and avocado.

Selenium

Why you need it—it works along with vitamin E to prevent the damage of free radicals in the body, in addition to playing a role in thyroid and immune system functioning. Where you can get it—look for meat and fish here, especially tuna, shrimp, sardines, salmon, turkey, cod, chicken, and lamb. But wait, if you’re looking for an alternative, Brazil nuts provide over 700% of your daily value!

Sodium

Why you need it—it works alongside potassium to regulate the body’s fluid balance in addition to aiding in nerve and muscle function. Where you can get it—table salt, seafood, and cheese.

Zinc

Why you need it—it plays a large role in immune system functioning and also supports normal growth and development. Where you can get it—red meats and some cheeses are a good source, although by far oysters are the richest source of zinc.

Part 1: Vitamins - Learn What Foods Give You the Best Source 0

It’s common to hear that you should eat oranges if you need more vitamin C in your diet or have a banana if you want to get some potassium. What you may not realize is that there are other food sources with a much higher vitamin or mineral content you may be missing out on. Here we take a look at the top foods you should be eating to get the most bang for your buck to incorporate those essential vitamins and minerals into your daily diet. We’ve broken it down into two parts: vitamins and minerals. Let’s start with vitamins and be on the lookout for more on minerals later! In order to provide you with the ultimate best food choices, to make our list the food sources had to provide at least 50% of the dietary reference intake (per the USDA) in one serving. Take a look!

Vitamins

Vitamin B1

Why you need it—in general the vitamin B family helps in converting carbs into energy as well as metabolizing fats and protein. B1, or Thiamine, can help ensure proper heart and nervous system function in addition to muscle coordination. Where you can get it—fortified for thiamine breakfast cereals, white rice.

Vitamin B2

Why you need it—also known as Riboflavin, it promotes growth—think healthy skin, hair and nails! Where you can get it—beef liver, fortified for riboflavin breakfast cereals, oats.

Vitamin B3

Why you need it—Niacin aids the body in producing sex and stress-related hormones, improves circulation, and can suppress inflammation. Where you can get it—tuna, chicken, turkey, salmon, lamb.

Vitamin B5

Why you need it—known as pantothenic acid, it helps in the production of red blood cells as well as maintaining a healthy digestive tract. Where you can get it—shiitake mushrooms (psst…if you don’t like mushrooms, you can get a pretty good helping of B5 in avocados and sweet potatoes too!).

Vitamin B6

Why you need it—also known as pyridoxine, it plays a role in cognitive development, immune function, and hemoglobin formation. Where you can get it—chickpeas and tuna.

Vitamin B12

Why you need it—cobalamin can be difficult for some people to maintain in their diet particularly if they do not regularly consume meat or fish, but it is essential in promoting nervous system health, cardiovascular support, and DNA production. Where you can get it—sardines, salmon, tuna, cod, lamb, scallops, shrimp, beef, clams (if these are not a part of your diet, look to other sources like yogurt or fortified breakfast cereals).

Folate

Why you need it—folic acid, or vitamin B9 helps in proper brain function and mental as well as emotional health. Where you can get it—beans, beans, and more beans! As well as lentils, asparagus, and spinach.

Vitamin A

Why you need it—retinol is majorly known to help vision, in addition to healthy development of an embryo and fetus. Where you can get it—sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, kale, Swiss chard, collard/beet/turnip greens, beef liver, cantaloupe, and pumpkin.

Vitamin C

Why you need it—absorbic acid is important for the growth and repair of bodily tissues, as well as bones and teeth, as well as promoting iron absorption. Where you can get it—yes, oranges still provide almost 100% DRI, but you can get even more vitamin C from papayas, bell peppers, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, strawberries, and even pineapple!

Vitamin D

Why you need it—aids in the absorption of calcium and phosphorus (we’ll get to those later). Where you can get it—sunshine! (Okay, that may not be something you can eat, but we still love it), as well as salmon and swordfish. Not a fan? Try fortified vitamin D orange juice or milk.

Vitamin E

Why you need it—it is most known for protection in free radical damage in addition to promoting cardiovascular health. Where you can get it—sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ oil.

Vitamin H

Why you need it—biotin is especially good for promoting cell growth and as a result is often seen in beauty products for hair, nails and skin. Where you can get it—eggs, brewer’s yeast, peanuts, and almonds.

Vitamin K

Why you need it—we call it vitamin K for a reason, as the K comes from the German word koagulation for blood clotting. That is because vitamin K is most known for helping our blood to clot (yes, blood clots can be good sometimes—they are necessary to stop the bleeding when our skin gets punctured!). Where you can get it—think greens! That’s probably the easiest way to remember how to get your vitamin K, so fill up on kale, spinach, mustard/collard/beet/turnip greens, Swiss chard, parsley, broccoli, and Brussel sprouts.