Find Out All About Minerals -
A Special Type Of Nutritional Supplement
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This article will be all about minerals. If you would like to know about vitamins or information on healthy weight loss supplements please visit those respective articles.
Ok, let's get started:
Minerals are inorganic matter which the body needs in small amounts. They are 22 metallic elements in the body which make up to 4% of bodyweight. Minerals are involved in a large number of metabolic processes and helps the body's synthesis of essential nutrients such as protein, fats and glycogen.
You can obtain minerals naturally through eating plants or eating animals which eat plants. If you have a well balanced diet, you can count on getting all the minerals you need from your diet.
I have produced an easy to use table below on minerals. I've included the information in Arnold Schwarzenegger's excellent book, "The New Encyclopaedia of Modern Bodybuilding" and I have further updated it to make it currently relevant.
Name |
Why it is important to your body |
Sources |
Problems with deficiency |
Recommended daily intake (mg) |
Calcium |
Good for strength of bones and teeth |
Milk products |
Muscular cramping |
800- 1200 |
|
aids in blood clotting |
vegetables (kale, turnip greens, mustard greens, tofu) |
Osteoporosis in the long term |
|
|
aids in the metabolism of vitamin D |
Seafood (sardines, clams, and oysters) |
|
|
Phosphorus |
Found in every cell, including DNA, RNA and ATP |
whole grain cereals |
Essential to regular the body's pH levels. |
700-1250 |
|
|
Nuts |
|
|
|
|
Meat |
|
|
|
|
Milk |
|
|
|
|
Chocolate |
|
|
Magnesium |
helps activate enzymes involving most processes in the body |
green, leafy |
effects your sensitivity to noise |
310-420 |
|
|
vegetables |
nervousness |
|
|
|
Legumes |
irritability |
|
|
|
whole-grain cereal |
depression |
|
|
|
Nuts |
apprehension |
|
|
|
Meat |
muscle weakness |
|
|
|
milk |
and cramps |
|
|
|
chocolate |
|
|
Sodium |
helps control your body fluids |
common salt |
muscle weakness |
1100-3300 |
|
helps with muscle contraction |
animal foods |
cramping |
|
|
|
seafood |
|
|
|
|
milk |
|
|
|
|
eggs |
|
|
Chlorine |
makes part of your digestive fluids |
table salt |
digestion problems |
1700-5100 |
|
helps clean blood |
meat |
constipation |
|
|
reduce excess fat |
seafood |
|
|
|
keep joints supple |
eggs |
|
|
|
expels waste matter |
milk |
|
|
Potassium |
helps your body metabolize protein and carbohydrate |
meat |
muscular weakness |
1875-5625 |
|
helps control fluid osmosis |
milk |
liver degeneration |
|
|
|
cereals |
sever stiffness |
|
|
|
vegetables |
|
|
|
|
frits |
|
|
|
|
legumes |
|
|
Sulfur |
helps clean the alimentary canal |
meat |
many diseases caused by a buildup of uric acid in the body |
No RDA established as yet |
|
helps stimulate bile secretions |
seafood |
|
|
|
helps purify the blood |
milk |
|
|
|
|
eggs |
|
|
|
|
poultry |
|
|
|
|
cheese |
|
|
|
|
legumes |
|
|
There are of course minerals you hear about every day that are important, but these only need to be present in the body in small amounts. These essential minerals are:
- Iron
- Zinc
- Copper
- Manganese
- Fluoride
- Molybdenum
- Cobalt
- Selenium
- Chromium
- Tin
- Nickel
- Vanadium
- Silicon