Types of Minerals
Minerals are nutrients needed to maintain
health. Elements (such as copper, iron,
calcium, potassium, etc.) required by the body in a certain amount (often in small quantities). Inorganic substances (elements or compounds) which are found in nature.
Types of Minerals What should be known
Like vitamins, minerals are essential nutrients for health maintenance and disease prevention. Minerals and vitamins act of interaction. You need vitamins to minerals to work and vice versa. Without some minerals, vitamins do not work properly.
The biggest difference between vitamins and minerals is that minerals are inorganic compounds, while vitamin organic.
Minerals can be classified according to the amount your body needs.
√ The main minerals
The major minerals is a mineral that we need more than 100 mg a day, whereas minor minerals (trace elements) is that we need less than 100 mg a day.
Calcium, copper, phosphorus, potassium, sodium and chloride are examples of major minerals, while chromium, magnesium, iodine, iron, fluorine, manganese, selenium and zinc are examples of minor minerals. The types of minerals distinction solely based on the required amount.
√ Mineral minor
Mineral minor is not less important than the main mineral. Minor mineral deficiency will cause serious health problems. When your diet is healthy and varied, you will get enough minerals. However, if your diet is unbalanced or you have impaired absorption of minerals, you may experience a shortage of minerals. In these conditions, you may need to take supplements of minerals and vitamins. Here are the types of the most important minerals for our body :
1. Calcium
You may have heard your parents say that milk is good for health. Milk is a good food because it contains a lot of calcium. Drinking milk regularly to make sure you have strong bones and grow well. Until your 30th birthday, your bones continue to grow and thrive. Once you are 30 years old, your bone growth is not as fast depreciation. If you do not get enough calcium, your bones will be brittle at the age of 50 years. Calcium can slow this process. Calcium is a mineral that your body needs the largest. Approximately 2-3 percent of your body weight is calcium, where 98% is stored in the bones and teeth and 1% in your blood. In addition to the maintenance of bones and teeth, calcium also helps muscle contraction and relaxation, blood clotting,
hormone function, secretion of enzymes, vitamin B12 absorption and prevention of kidney stones and heart disease.
Source of Calcium : milk and milk products (cheese, yogurt), eggs, fish, nuts, and dark green vegetables.
2. Magnesium
Magnesium helps regulate levels of potassium and sodium in the body, which is involved in the control of blood pressure. Magnesium plays an important role in the maintenance of dental tissue, bones and muscles, regulates body temperature, production and transportation of energy, metabolism of fats, proteins and
carbohydrates, contraction and relaxation of muscles. Most magnesium is stored in bones and teeth, others in the blood and muscles. If you do not have enough magnesium in the blood, your body will take it from your bones, which in turn can also cause bone loss.
Magnesium sources : milk, green leafy vegetables, avocado, banana, chocolate, soy products such as tempeh or tofu, grains and legumes.
3. Iron
Stored in hemoglobin (red blood cells), Iron carries oxygen to body cells and carries carbon dioxide out of the body, supports muscle function, enzymes, protein and energy metabolism.
Lack of iron causes anemia, fatigue, weakness, headache and apathy.
There are two types of iron in foods :
√ Heme iron is easily absorbed by the body and is found in meat, poultry and fish.
√ Non-heme iron is more easily absorbed and contained in plants such as beans, broccoli, spinach and kale. Your body can absorb 20-40 percent of the iron from animal sources and 5-20 percent of iron from plant sources. You need to eat more vegetables to get the iron you need. To improve absorption of iron, vitamin C you need assistance.
4. Zinc
Zinc is found in all cells of the body, especially the skin, nails, hair and eyes. If you are a man, you also save zinc in the prostate. Zinc plays an important role in the synthesis of DNA and RNA , production of proteins, insulin and sperm, helps in the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, protein and alcohol, play a role in removing carbon dioxide, accelerate healing, growth, maintenance of body tissues, and supports the senses such as smell and taste. Zinc deficiency causes growth retardation, loss of appetite, slow healing, hair loss, low sexual libido, loss of taste and smell and difficulty adapting to light the night.
Zinc sources : water, high protein foods such as beef, lamb, and poultry, shellfish, crab, lobster, nuts and seeds.
5. Selenium
We need selenium in small amounts but regularly for liver health. Selenium is found in soil, so that the amount found in vegetables and fruit depending on the planting and farming methods used. Plants cultivated in soil that is too often treated will have a low selenium.
Source Selenium : meat, fish and nuts, milk and dairy products, eggs, milk, chicken, garlic, onion and green vegetables.
6. Potassium, Sodium and Chloride
Potassium, sodium and chloride is a mineral that dissolves in the blood and other body fluids. They are split into ions. The third mineral make the fluids in your body remains constant and does not fluctuate. They also play an important role in the transport of glucose into cells and waste disposal, blood pressure, transmission of nerve impulses, heart rhythm and muscle function. They also play an important role in the transport of glucose into cells and waste disposal, blood pressure, transmission of nerve impulses, heart rhythm and muscle function. Deficiencies of these minerals cause drowsiness, anxiety, nausea, weakness, and irregular heartbeat.
Source of Potassium, Sodium and Chloride : almost all foods except oils, fats and sugars, but can be damaged / lost if the food is cooked.
7. Other minerals
In addition to the above minerals, other minerals needed by the body are boron, chromium, copper, fluorine, iodine, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, silicon, lead, and vanadium. In addition, you also need very small doses of lithium and aluminum. No one knows why you need these minerals and how much you need. It was not so important because almost no one is deprived of these nutrients.
