Minerals
Minerals are substances that help the vitamins work. Human body requires minerals to function properly. Minerals are important to build strong bones, transmission of nerve signals and to maintain a normal heart rhythm. They are also used to produce hormones in the body.
Minerals can be divided into macro elements and micro elements (often also called tracers) by the body’s need for substance. Macro-means large in Latin and the minerals included in the macro elements are simply those that the human body has a greater need for, compared with the minerals belong to the micro-elements (micro means small).
Macro Elements: Calcium, Phosphate, Sulfur, Sodium, Potassium, Chlorine, Magnesium
Micro Elements (tracers): Iron, Zinc, Copper, Manganese, Selenium, Iodine, Molybdenum, Cobalt
There are even more minerals than those listed above.
You probably get a sufficient quantity of several minerals, but many people don’t get enough of iron, zinc and calcium so make sure you get enough of these minerals through your diet.
- Iron found in meat, shellfish, mussels, wholegrain breads, cereals, spinach, kale, broccoli, lentils, chickpeas, beans and dried fruit.
- Zinc found in meat, seafood, whole meal bread, oats, rye, graham flour, lentils, chickpeas, beans.
- Calcium found in milk, cheese, lentils, chickpeas, beans, nuts, sesame seeds, spinach, broccoli, green beans
Mineral supplements
Some people, especially pregnant women, nursing mothers, elderly, vegans or those who eat too much processed food, may need mineral supplements. Iron supplement should be taken it with a glass of juice and during mealtime to help the body extract more iron from the supplement. If you drink coffee or tea, wait an hour after taking an iron supplement. Furthermore, if you take calcium supplement, make sure you don’t take it at the same time as your iron supplement. It is also good to divide your calcium doses; take one half in the morning and the other half in the evening to get the best absorption. In order to absorb calcium the body needs vitamin D and therefore it can be good to take calcium supplement added with vitamin D. The body also needs twice as much calcium as magnesium or else the minerals can antagonize each other. Remember that you should keep your pills in the dark, cold and dry.
Learn about each mineral below: