Vitamins - The Ultimate Food Guide Episode 1

Nutrients like protein, carbs, fats and water are essential for us. Vitamins as well as minerals and fibre belong to the nutrients which are functionally important to our body – we need them to function.

In our first episode, part 1, we discuss the nutrient group "vitamins". In part 2 we’ll focus on vitamin B12 because you can find so many myths and different opinions on this topic on the internet and, of course, it’s the vitamin which we, on a plant-based diet, usually lack (or maybe not??).

By all means though, if you’re not into reading all of it, I don’t blame you. This is why I prepared “I’m too lazy to read, but don’t wanna miss out” Quick Facts down below ;). You can use the "jump to" menu above to navigate.

But, if you’re keen, let’s dive in!

Disclaimer: I’m not a scientist nor a nutritionist. This is based on personal experience, opinion and my own research. Please read with care, do your own research, or consult your physician.

What vitamins are there?

There are 13 vitamins which are essential for our body.

Vitamins are divided into two groups: One is water soluble (B-complex and C vitamins) which means, as the name already indicates, they need water to be absorbed by our bodies. The other group is fat soluble (vitamin A, D, E and K) and need fat to be absorbed.

Water soluble vitamins

💡 Interesting facts

water-soluble vitamins are not stored in the body and need regular, daily replacement
they are not heat or light resistant and can easily be destroyed by cooking (there are some B-vitamins though which are)
they can be dangerous or toxic when overdosed (however, there is a controversy whether this is actually true)

Vitamin B-Complex

There are 8 essential B vitamins: B1 (thiamine), B2 (ribolavin), B3 (niacin), B5 (pantothenic acid), B6 (pyridoxine), B7 (biotin), B9 (folic acid), and B12 (cobalamin).

💚 What do we need the vitamin B-complex for?

B1: helps the body to change food into energy and is essential for heart function and healthy nerve cells
B2: is important for growth and the production of red blood cells. It works with the other vitamins of the B-complex
B3: for healthy skin and nerves
B5: is responsible for the metabolism and is part of the production of hormones and cholesterol
B6: our body needs it to form red blood cells and for our brain function. It also plays a role when it comes to the usage of protein
B7: it helps with the metabolism of proteins and carbs and with the production of hormones and cholesterol, like B5
B9: works with vitamin B12 to form red blood cells and is needed for the production of DNA. That’s why it‘s very important during pregnancy – a deficiency could cause birth defects
B12: is important for metabolism, red blood cells and the central nervous system

🍎 Which foods contain the B vitamins? We can find most B vitamins in fruits, vegetables (especially in dark leafy), nuts and seeds, whole grains as well as in animal products. They are fairly easy to get when you eat wholesome foods. The only exception is vitamin B12 which we will discuss further in part 2.

Vitamin C

❕ Good to know: vitamin C increases iron absorption and utilisation! You could eat a whole truck load of foods high in iron but not get any (or only very few) out of it when you don’t eat something with it that contains vitamin C.

💚 What do we need vitamin C for? It helps form and maintain bones, skin, and blood vessels because it’s holding cells together through collagen synthesis, and improves our immune system function. Together with vitamin E, it works as an antioxidant to neutralise free radicals in our bodies.

🍎 Which foods contain vitamin C? Red capsicums/peppers, citrus fruits, kiwis, berries, herbs (like parsley and thyme) and leafy greens (like spinach and kale).

Fat soluble vitamins

❕ Fat soluble vitamins need fat. This is why it is so important to add oils or dietary fats to our diets! All those “no fat” diets are crap and unhealthy!

If you, for example, make yourself a smoothie or a juice from fruit and vegetables only, your body won’t be able to get as many, if any at all, fat soluble vitamins from it as it would by adding a spoonful of oil or fatty food like avocado, for instance.

💡 Interesting facts

our bodies store fat soluble vitamins which makes deficiencies nearly impossible (when eating right and balanced)
only small amounts are essential for our bodies
fat soluble vitamins don’t get as easily destroyed by cooking as water soluble vitamins
usually no supplements are needed as they are found in many kinds of food
they can be dangerous and toxic when overdosed (normally, this does not happen when eating natural, non-processed or non-enriched foods and no supplements are taken)

Vitamin A

💚 What do we need vitamin A for? Vitamin A is important for our eyesight and vision (like helping our eyes to adjust to light), and regulates bone growth, mucous membranes (mouth, nose, throat and lungs) and immune system.

🍎 Which foods contain vitamin A? As a rule of thumb, you can find vitamin A in all orange coloured foods like carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, squash and apricots. It’s the antioxidant beta-carotene which gives them the orange colour. Our bodies can convert beta-carotene to vitamin A.

Vitamin D

Oh, there’s so much I could to tell you about this one but I try to keep it short and focused on the most important facts.

We learned that fat soluble vitamins are stored in the body. Vitamin D, especially, is stored in our fat cells under our skin. It is stored there, until we need it.

💚 What do we need vitamin D for? Vitamin D’s main job is to help our bodies to absorb calcium which we need for healthy bones (including our teeth!), blood clotting and muscular function.

🍎 Which foods contain vitamin D? Here's the amazing thing: You can get vitamin D not only from food (mostly in animal products and mushrooms) or supplements, but also from the sun!! And none of the sources is better or worse than the other!

Get some sun!

I personally prefer the sun as my vitamin D source because it’s the most natural – our skin is made for it, after all! When exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB aka sunlight), it converts the cholesterol in the skin to Vitamin D.

In our modern times though, we tend to spend most of our days inside. Apparently, the skin cannot absorb UVB through windows which means, you have to be outside under the sky (and it doesn't matter whether it's cloudy or you stay in the shade)! My doctor once said that if you spent around 10 minutes in the sun (without sun protection!, fatty parts (thighs, tummy) exposed) every day in summer, it would be enough to get you through winter. But, please, be mindful of your skin! Use sun screen when you’re outside for longer!

Another important thing to remember is your skin colour (and technically also where you live in the world). Light coloured skin needs way less sunlight to produce vitamin D then darker types. Let’s say, just to get an idea, an English person flies to Spain, would probably only need a few minutes to get enough vitamin D whereas a Ghanaian person flying to Sweden would need an hour or so. But, I reckon, an English under the sun in England and a Ghanaian under the sun in Ghana would probably roughly need about the same time to get the same amounts.

Vitamin E

💚 What do we need vitamin E for? Vitamin E mostly functions as antioxidant in our bodies (particularly in combination with vitamin C). It protects vitamins A and C, red blood cells, and essential fatty acids from destruction.

🍎 Which foods contain vitamin E? Vegetable oils like wheat germ and sunflower, but also in nuts (almonds, hazelnuts), seeds (sunflower, pumpkin), fruit (mango, kiwi, avocado) and vegetables (red capsicum/pepper, turnip and beet greens) contain vitamin E.

Vitamin K

💚 What do we need vitamin K for? Vitamin K, in general, helps with blood clotting.

🍎 Which foods contain vitamin K? We mainly find it in green leafy vegetables like kale, spinach, broccoli and collard greens.

❕ Good to know: There are two main forms of vitamin K: K1 and K2. Vitamin K1 is the most common and most absorbed and it is the one we find in green leafy vegetables. However, our bodies absorb Vitamin K2 much easier. It is mostly found in fermented foods (animal products only). The only vegan source, according to studies, is Natto which is a Japanese dish made from fermented soy beans.

I personally think, you don’t really have to worry about it all too much. As long as you eat your greens and get vitamin K1 into your system, you’re all good. But again, I’m not a physician, so you might want to do your own research on this topic!

I’m too lazy to read, but don’t wanna miss out 💡 Quick Facts

there are 2 kinds of vitamins: water (vitamin B-complex, C) and fat (vitamins A, D, E, K) soluble vitamins
for vegans: all vitamins are found in fruit, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. The only exception is B12 (more about it in part 2) and K2 (only found in Natto, read more about, if you wish)
we need water soluble vitamins on a daily basis and they are sensitive to light and heat, thus get destroyed by cooking
important fact, people often don’t know: Vitamin C is needed to bind iron and help our bodies to absorb it
fat soluble vitamins are stored in the bodies which means we don’t tend to be deficient on them
this is also why you don’t really need supplements. They rather cause an overdose! Be careful!
those vitamins are also more heat-resistant than water soluble vitamins, thus don’t easily get destroyed by cooking
important fact, people often don’t know: Vitamins A, D, E and K need fat to be absorbed: no fat in your diet, no vitamins!
important fact, people often don’t know: we can get vitamin D from foods, supplements OR the sun. It doesn’t matter which source we use. Choose wisely, though! Go out in the sun as much as you can (or sit under a tree in the shade) – that’s my suggestion!

Vitamins | Episode 1 - Part 1

What vitamins are there?

Water soluble vitamins

💡 Interesting facts

Vitamin B-Complex

Vitamin C

Fat soluble vitamins

💡 Interesting facts

Vitamin A

Vitamin D

Get some sun!

Vitamin E

Vitamin K

I’m too lazy to read, but don’t wanna miss out 💡 Quick Facts

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