Vitamins are organic chemicals that are found in food in very small amount but are vital to human health. They are especially necessary for growth, and if a diet is lacking in any of the vitamins, there are serious medical effects as a result.
Vitamins Named by Funk
The name ‘vitamin’ was coined in 1911 by a Polish scientist called Casimir Funk, who was working at the Lister Institute in London, UK. He isolated a substance that prevented nerve inflammation in chickens raised on a diet deficient in just that substance. The word was originally derived from ‘vital amine’ – a member of the amine group of chemicals that was vital to life. The name became ‘vitamin’ when some were found that were not amines.
Characteristics of Vitamins
In order to be classified as a vitamin there are five characteristics a chemical must have:
- It must be required in small amounts
- It must be essential in that certain reactions in the body cannot happen without it
- It must be obtained directly from food because the body is unable to manufacture it in sufficient quantities.
- They must be consumed regularly because the body cannot store them and loses them gradually.
- A deficiency results in at least one specific disorder.
So far more than 50 vitamins that fit these characteristics have been identified.
Common essential vitamins include Vitamins A, D, B6, B12, C, thiamin, riboflavin, and folacin. Very small amounts of these are required by the human body, the daily dose of all necessary vitamins would be invisible to the human eye, but the effects of a deficiency are very obvious.
Vitamin Deficiencies
Deficiencies can result in infections, skin disorders, and other diseases. More specifically, a lack of vitamin A results in problems of vision, a deficiency of vitamin D causes weakened bones, and a lack of vitamin C results in the disorder known as ‘scurvy’. If enough riboflavin is not consumed, inflammation of the mouth and skin can result, and a lack of thiamin will result in muscle weakness and disorders of the nervous system.
The best way to ensure that the correct quantities of nutrients required by the body are consumed is by eating a balanced diet. While multi-vitamin pills contain the required quantities of known vitamins, there may be other essential chemicals that have not yet been discovered which are present in tiny amounts in certain foods.
So, for example, vitamin A is found in dairy products and fish oils, the group of B vitamins are found in animal products and yeast extracts, as well as nuts, fish and dairy products, and vitamin C is found in fresh fruit and vegetables.
Sources:
“Definition of Vitamins”, MedicineNet.com, accessed 6th May 2010
Dr Dan Rutherford, “Sources of Vitamins”, NetDoctor.co.uk, accessed 6th May 2010
Simon Davies - Simon Davies has lived a varied life so far After completing a BSc in Chemistry at the University of Bristol, UK, he worked as a ...
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