Mushroom Is A Natural Source Of Vitamin D

Vitamin D is in category of fat-soluble vitamin therefore human body can store extra amounts of vitamin D.

It is necessary to get enough vitamin D from the diet because it helps human bodies absorb and use calcium and phosphorous to build strong bones and teeth. In this case, vitamin D can help protect older adults against osteoporosis and reducing the risk of falls in the elderly.

Vitamin D is important to the body in many other ways as well. Vitamin D is responsible for brain development. Muscles need it to move, for example, nerves need it to carry messages between the brain and every body part, and the immune system needs vitamin D to fight off invading bacteria and viruses.

Many other studies suggest that vitamin D may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes and infectious disease e.g. respiratory tract infection.

The two main dietary category of vitamin D are D2, found in fungi and yeast, and D3, found in animals; lesser amounts of vitamin D3 and D4 are also found in fungi.

Certain foods in the Western diet are a good source of vitamin D, with the best example of naturally occurring dietary source being oily fish. Even though, vegetable foods generally contain low vitamin D, mushrooms provide some vitamin D.

Mushrooms are a natural source of vitamin D2 with lesser amounts of vitamins D3 and D4. The vitamin D2 content of mushrooms can be increased dramatically by exposed to a source of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, such as sunlight or a UV lamp, whereby ergocalciferol is formed from ergosterol.

Worldwide mushroom consumption has improved markedly in the past four decades, and mushrooms have the potential to be the only non-animal, unfortified food source of vitamin D that can deliver a substantial quantity of vitamin D2 in a single serve.
Mushroom Is A Natural Source Of Vitamin D

The best foods with Vitamin C

Vitamin C or ascorbic acid has been described as the major waters-soluble antioxidant in human serum and has several other essential functions in the body. The recommended Dietary Allowance for adults is 60 mg/day. Humans cannot produce vitamin C in their own bodies and must obtain it from food sources.

In the United States, the foods that are the highest contributors of vitamin C are orange juice, grapefruit, tomatoes and tomato juices and potatoes.

Other good sources of vitamin C are vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and other green leafy vegetables, pepper, mangoes, papaya and strawberry. Some types of meat products, such as brains, liver and kidneys were found to retain vitamin C.

For practical reason, citrus and other fruits are good daily sources of vitamin C, as they are generally eaten raw and are therefore not subjected to cooking procedures that can destroy vitamin C.

In addition to naturally occurring sources of vitamin C, fortified foods and vitamin supplements provide important sources of this vitamin for Americans.
The best foods with Vitamin C

Carotenoid pigments in plants

Plant pigments fall into three major groups: carotenoids chlorophylls and flavonoids. Plant carotenoids are responsible for the red, orange and yellow pigments found in fruits and roots such as tomatoes, red peppers, pumpkins and carrots.

Carotenoids pigments are hydrocarbon chains with 40 carbon atoms. They can be seen in the petals of many flowers and are the primary pigments responsible for the fall coloration of deciduous trees.

More than 450 carotenoids occur in nature. The carotenoids can be divided into two basic types:
*Carotene which contain no oxygen atoms
*Xanthophyll which does contain oxygen Heat affects the color of vegetables, most likely because it modifies the pigments’ chemical structure.

Vegetables containing β–carotenes should not be overheated, because this pigment not only contributes to color but can also be converted to vitamin A; therefore, its destruction would be doubly undesirably.
Carotenoid pigments in plants

Vitamin K and Its Role in Our Body

Vitamin K and Its Role in Our Body
Vitamin K denotes a group of lipophilic, hydrophobic vitamins that are needed for the posttranslational modification of certain proteins. Chemically they are 2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone derivatives.

Vitamin K is fat soluble. It is essential for the synthesis of prothrombin, a compound involved in the clotting of blood. Cabbage, spinach, cauliflower, and liver are especially good sources of vitamin K, although moderate amounts are found in many other vegetables, as well, as in cereals.

Although vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin, the body stores very little of it and its stores are rapidly depleted without regular dietary intake. Perhaps, because of its limited ability to store vitamin K, the body recycles it through a process called the vitamin K cycle. The vitamin K cycle allows a small amount of vitamin K to function in the gamma-carboxylation of proteins many times, decreasing the dietary requirement.

The significant symptom of vitamin K deficiency in humans and in animals is the loss of the ability of the blood to clot which is, of course, a dangerous condition that can result in death whenever bleeding from cuts occurs. It is believed that humans ordinarily receive adequate amounts of vitamin K in the diet.
Vitamin K and Its Role in Our Body