Vitamins and minerals are used by our bodies and if we do not get enough of the right ones it can affect us mentally and physically. 

As our bodies do not make vitamins and minerals, we have to get them from food.  If we do not have enough of one vitamin it can also affect our body's ability to take in other vitamins.

Each vitamin has a role to play to keep us healthy.  For example Vitamin C helps our body heal if we get a cut.  There are two types of vitamins water-soluble and fat soluble.

Those vitamins which are fat soluble can be stored in your body for a while, some for days, others for months, so your body can build up a supply ready for when they are needed.  Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble.  Water soluble vitamins travel through your bloodstream and are flushed out when you go to the toilet.  Your body will use the ones it needs while they are travelling through your system.  These vitamins need to be replaced a lot as they aren't around for long.  These vitamins include vitamin C and B vitamins.

Plants obtain minerals from the soil.  Animals as well as humans get minerals from eating plants.  As a result humans can get the minerals we need by eating plants or animals.  Minerals can also be present in water.  How much and what minerals we take into our bodies can depend on how much of a mineral is present in the soil in the regions where our food, water or meat comes from.

Solutions to combating malnutrition:

Fortification

Adding vitamins and minerals to foods that are regularly eaten by a large portion of the population (ie: flour, salt).

Supplementation

Reaching out to people at risk with vitamin and mineral tablets.

Education

Educating people about the possibilities of fortification and supplementation, as well as the kinds of foods that are best to eat.

Disease Control

As people lose essential vitamins and minerals from their bodies when they have diseases, such as malaria and diarrhoea, controlling these diseases helps to prevent malnutrition.

Home Fortification

Where people in their homes add vitamins or minerals to the food they cook at home.  In order for this to happen there needs to be a product that is easily accessible (ie: sachets) and affordable to low-income communities.  The community also has to be aware of the need for it.

Labels on food packages generally contain a list of ingredients.  Sometimes they will list the RDI – Recommended Dietary Intake, of particular vitamins and minerals.   This is based on the needs a male adult has per day for the particular vitamin and mineral.

Vitamins and minerals

Below is a short look at well known vitamins, a few minerals, and a more in-depth look at vitamin A and Iron (mineral), two very important nutrients:

The B Vitamins

The B vitamins help our bodies make energy and are involved with making red blood cells which carry oxygen around our body.  Every part of our body needs oxygen.  Some foods with B vitamins in them are beans, peas, and whole grain bread.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C helps our body tissue like muscles to keep healthy, and helps our cuts and wounds to heal.  It also helps us ward off illnesses.  Some foods with Vitamin C in them include oranges, red and green capsicum, lemons, tomatoes and cabbage.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D helps us build strong bones and teeth, and it helps us to take in the calcium we need.  Some foods with vitamin D in them are milk, salmon and eggs.  Regular sunlight can help the body take in vitamin D.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E helps keep our body tissues such as our eyes and skin healthy.  It also protects our lungs from being harmed by polluted air and helps in the making of red blood cells.  Some foods with vitamin E in them are sardines, nuts and spinach.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K helps our blood to clot when we bleed.  It helps stop the bloodflow.  Some foods with vitamin K include pork, liver and yoghurt.

Calcium

Calcium is needed to help build our bones and teeth.  Some foods with calcium in them are dairy products, tofu and cabbage.

Sodium

Sodium helps regulate the fluid balance in our bodies and it also helps with the contraction and expansion of muscles.  It is present in all our body fluids.  A vegetable with sodium in it is zucchini, we also get a lot of our sodium from salt.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A is essential for the eyes. It helps us to see better at night and also helps us to see in colour.  In extreme cases the lack of vitamin A can cause blindness.  Some foods with vitamin A in them are apricots, pumpkin, eggs and carrots.

More commonly no obvious physical affects of the lack of vitamin A are noted but inside the body the effectiveness of a person's immune system (the part of the body that helps fight diseases) is decreased.  This is said to lead to the deaths of approximately 1 million children a year (p.13, Vitamin & Mineral Deficiency).

Zambia, which has only one producer of sugar, has been adding Vitamin A to their sugar since 1998.  UNICEF often distributes Vitamin A to children when they immunise them, they did this for children after the Samoan Tsunami hit and also do it during National Immunisation Days.  National Immunisation Days are days set aside in particular countries to do a mass of child immunisation all at once.  Supplementation using vitamin A capsules should begin at six months old in areas where children do not get enough vitamin A in their diets.

Iron

Iron is needed for the development of our brains.  It is especially important that we get enough iron from the ages of 6 month to 2 years.  After 6 months of age a child only gets 50% of the iron it needs from breastmilk and the rest has to come from their diet.  In developed countries a lot of infant foods like cereals have added iron.

Women of childbearing age are at high risk if their bodies lack the iron to cope with the stress of childbirth.

A number of countries fortify flour with iron, 54 in fact.  27% of all flour produced in flour mills world-wide have added iron.