| Vitamin |
Benefits |
Food Sources |
Deficiency Symptoms |
| Vitamin A |
Critical to the development of bones and teeth. Helps maintain good eyesight. Enhances
the immune system. Prevents red blood cell damage. |
Dark green leafy vegetables, Yellow-orange vegetables and fruits, Liver, Milk, Butter |
Rhodopsin deficiency, night blindness, retarded growth, skin disorders, and increased
infection risk |
| Vitamin B1 |
Needed by your body to process fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
B-1 also helps form the fuel your body needs to function. |
Wheat germ, liver, pork, whole & enriched grains, dried beans |
Beriberi-muscle, weakness (including cardiac muscle), neuritis, and paralysis |
| Vitamin B2 |
Processes amino acids and fats. Also activates vitamin B-6 and folic acid. |
Dairy products, green leafy vegetables (like spinach), whole & enriched grains |
Eye disorders and skin cracking, especially at corners of mouth |
| Vitamin B3 |
Used by your body to release energy from carbohydrates and to process alcohol. |
Meat, poultry, fish, nuts, whole & enriched grains, dried beans |
Pellagra-diarrhea, dermatitis, and mental disturbance |
| Vitamin B5 |
Converts nutrients into energy. Also essential for processing fats. |
Lean meats, whole grains, legumes |
Tingling hands and feet, loss of appetite, nausea, abdominal pain, fatigue,
insomnia, reduced resistance to infection |
| Vitamin B6 |
The principle vitamin for processing amino acids. Also helps convert nutrients into energy. |
Fish, poultry, lean meats, whole grains |
Dermatitis, retarded growth, and nausea |
| Vitamin
B 12 |
Maintains healthy nervous system and assists with blood cell formation. |
Liver, lean meat, fish and poultry, eggs, dairy products |
Pernicious anemia and nervous system disorders |
| Vitamin B9 - Folic Acid |
Assists the normal development of cells, especially during pregnancy.
Also protects your body from amino acids linked to heart disease and stroke. |
Green leafy vegetables (like spinach), liver, dried beans |
Macrocytic anemia (enlarged red blood cells) |
| Vitamin C |
Helps the formation of scar tissue, Fights bacterial infection, Reduces the impact
of some allergy producing substances, Helps prevent the common cold (Controversial), As an
antioxidant, fights cancer, cataracts, and heart disease. |
Citrus fruits, melon, berries, vegetables; like Broccoli, Tomatos,
Oranges, Grapefruit, Cantaloupe |
Scurvey-defective bone formation and poor wound healing |
| Vitamin D |
Critical for bone development and strength, Mantains a stable nervous system,
Maintains a normal and strong heartbeat, Helps in blood clotting. |
Fish-liver oils, Fortified milk, Egg yolks, Tuna fish |
Rickets-poorly developed, weak bones; osteomalacia; bone resorption |
| Vitamin E |
Lessens oxidative damage after hard training, Prevents lung damage from
many pollutants, Vital to the immune system . |
Vegetable oils, Wheat germ, Whole grains, Rice, Leafy vegetables |
Muscular dystrophy and sterility |
| Vitamin K |
Essential to blood clotting. |
Green leafy vegetables, Vegetable oils, Fish |
Excessive bleeding due to retarded blood clotting |
