Did you know that the human body requires 13 vitamins in order to properly function?
Did you know that all 13 essential vitamins are found in whole foods?
According to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans "nutrients should be met primarily through consuming foods. Foods provide an array of nutrients and other compounds that may have beneficial effects on health. " In laymen's terms this means that by increasing your intake of healthy food rich with nutrients, you are guaranteed to lose weight and increase your metabolism.
B Vitamins
Of all the 13 essential vitamins, B vitamins are most commonly linked to weight loss. To better understand this relationship lets discuss the B family itself. It contains a total of eight vitamins B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), niacin, B6 (pyridoxine), folic acid, B12 (cobalamine), biotin and pantothenic. B vitamins serve in a number of different capacities and perform a host of functions including creating new blood cells, boosting energy, and regulating metabolism.
With respect to metabolism, B vitamins are especially important so much that many weight loss clinicians will offer weight loss patients shots of B12 to help them progress through their weight loss period. For the best results, B vitamins should be consumed collectively. Developing a diet that contains B vitamins rich foods like dairy products, egg yolks, meat, fish, leafy vegetables, and legumes will certainly improve your chances of boosting your metabolism.
Vitamin C
Paired with vitamin E, vitamin C helps in the antioxidant process and can help avoid harmful oxidation of cells. Vitamin C is also serves as a facilitator of absorption of supplementary vitamins and minerals including calcium, iron, and folcacin. Vitamin C has also been linked as a correlate to healthy hormones, bones, blood vessels, collagen and teeth. Aside from the nutritional benefits, Vitamin C is also essential to improving your immune system which is absolutely necessary for weight loss. For best results, consider incorporating the following vitamin C enriched foods into your diet dark green vegetables and broccoli, red and green peppers, citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruits, and tomatoes.
Vitamin D
Through recent research, Vitamin D has been cited as a contributing factor to greater weight loss success. Be clear that Vitamin D is not the answer to all of your weight loss problems but it can change and improve some things. In particular, for persons with inadequate levels of Vitamin D who are on a weight loss program, supplementing with the vitamin can help to create balance and augment one's weight loss success. This of course would take place in accordance with other routine weight loss techniques like exercising and eating healthy foods.
Just as Vitamin C, Vitamin D also helps with the absorption of calcium which is critical in preventing osteoporosis and maintaining solid bone density. In the most natural of sources, Vitamin D can be created through 10 to 20 minutes of direct sunlight a few (three times) a week. If it is the winter season or if you're not a big fan of the sun, you can also get a decent amount from foods like cereal, bread, milk, yogurt, fish liver oils, catfish, tuna, herring, and salmon.
Vitamin E
Similar to B vitamins and Vitamin C, Vitamin E has also been identified as a strong antioxidant and contributing factor in establishing an efficient metabolism rate. In addition, Vitamin E also boosts your immune system and has been linked to preventing heart disease and in some cases cancer. Healthy skin is another benefit of Vitamin E. Vitamin E will help encourage skin elasticity which for someone looking to trim inches is a good thing. Your best option for the greatest results is to identify Vitamin E found in unsaturated fats including leafy / green vegetable like lettuce or brocoli, vegetable oil, whole grains, avocado, wheat germ oil, seeds, and nuts.