Eli5: what exactly are vitamins and how do they benefit us biologically?
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Vitamins are organic molecules that are needed for metabolic functions like growth, repair, and normal cell function. Vitamins are of two types; fat soluble and water soluble. There are thirteen different essential vitamins, each of which play a different yet crucial part in our bodies. I’m sure you’ve heard of Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid. It’s needed for growth and repair of tissues ALL over the body. A severe lack of vitamin C is known as ‘scurvy’. Vitamin D is another vitamin that’s spoken about. It is needed for the body absorb and retain calcium and phosphorus, which are essential for building and maintaining bones.
vitamins are essential molecules that are either co-enzymes or co-factors for a lot of chemical reactions in the body.
They’re not just beneficial, they are essential. Meaning, you need them to have normal functions. The reason why we need to take certain vitamins is because we’ve lost the ability to make some of them. Some animals can make their own certain vitamins.
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