Can Vitamin Supplements Replace Fruits and Veggies?

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4/30/2023

Updated:

5/13/2023

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Vitamins, whose name is derived from the Latin word for “life,” are essential nutrients for the body and are found in a variety of whole fruits and vegetables. Some people find it challenging to consume fruits and vegetables daily and opt for vitamin supplements instead.

But can we truly get our nutrients from supplements instead of whole food sources?

While vitamin supplements can provide some nutrients, it’s important to remember that nature offers us a bounty of food sources that contain not only essential nutrients, but also beneficial substances such as fiber, carotenoids, flavonoids, and antioxidants, which are often absent in supplements.

Whole Fruit and Veggie Nutrition

Multivitamins

Every fruit and vegetable contains multiple vitamins that are likely familiar, including A, C, and E. You’ve probably heard that citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C, while avocados are rich in vitamin E. But oranges, for example, also contain the essential vitamins A, K, B3 (niacin), and B9 (folic acid). Additionally, the body is built to process vitamins and nutrients in combination.

Phytonutrients

The substances known as phytonutrients are associated with optimal health and increased longevity, and include carotenoids, flavonoids, and polyphenols—micronutrients that can be converted into vitamins. For example, carotenoids can be converted to vitamin A in the body.

Phytonutrients also have physiological functions that vitamins do not have, including anti-inflammatory, hypotensive, immune system strengthening, and other anti-disease functions. Antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase, scavenge free radicals in the body, which protects cells from oxidative damage and disease.

Polyphenols also have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, slowing down aging and reducing the risk of certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Natural phytochrome substances, such as anthocyanins, are powerful antioxidants with anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-cancer effects.

Properties That Reduce Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

A meta-analysis of 469,551 participants found that consuming more fruits and vegetables reduced the risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases.

A study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health found that people who consumed an average of eight or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day were 30 percent less likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke than those who consumed less than 1.5 servings per day.

Other comprehensive studies found that people who ate more than five servings of fruits and vegetables daily had about a 17 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease and a 26 percent lower risk of stroke than those who ate less than three servings per day.

Other Benefits

Dietary fiber: Vegetables and fruits are rich in dietary fiber, which improves intestinal health, facilitates gastrointestinal peristalsis, and removes intestinal fats to prevent constipation, colon cancer, and other intestinal diseases. It slows down the body’s absorption of glucose, lowering blood sugar.

Minerals: Fruits and vegetables are rich in minerals and essential trace elements for the body, including iron, zinc, calcium, and magnesium. They are important in the body’s growth and development, the immune system, the nervous system, and bone health.

Water and inorganic salts: Vegetables and fruits are rich in many nutrients and water and inorganic salts, which can effectively maintain the water and electrolyte balance of the body and keep the body healthy. They can also help regulate the body’s pH balance and maintain the normal operation of physiological functions.

Enhance food taste, replace sugars and fats: The natural aromas and flavors in fruits and vegetables can add to the taste spectrum of your diet. Some sweet fruits, such as strawberries, blueberries, and kiwi, can replace high-sugar desserts. Some richly flavored vegetables, such as tomatoes, peppers, and onions, can add flavor to many dishes, reducing the use of high-fat seasonings such as butter and cheese.

Who Needs Vitamin Supplements?

When people eat a diet that includes a sufficient variety of whole fruits and vegetables, they likely do not need supplementation.

However, people who don’t get enough vitamins through whole foods and people with special requirements may need additional vitamin supplementation and may need to consult their doctors for guidance. Young children, pregnant women, the elderly, and vegetarians may need supplements.

Some vitamins may also interact with certain drugs, increasing their toxicity or reducing their effectiveness. Excessive doses of vitamins can lead to toxicity, especially of fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E, and K. These vitamins can accumulate in the body and cause toxic symptoms such as headaches, nausea, and osteomalacia. Therefore, it’s important to consult a doctor or nutritionist before taking any vitamin supplements.

The Role of Vitamins

Vitamins are vital for human health and are key to many physiological processes.

Vitamin A

This vitamin is a crucial nutrient that plays several essential roles in our body, including protecting vision, maintaining eye health, enhancing immune system function, and promoting fetal and infant growth and development. Inadequate intake of this essential vitamin can lead to various health problems, such as night blindness and increased risk of measles and diarrhea.

Individuals with liver disease, cystic fibrosis, and Crohn’s disease may require additional vitamin A supplements to ensure they receive adequate amounts of this vital nutrient.

B Vitamins

These help to maintain the body’s energy metabolism, nervous system, skin, eyes, liver, immune system, and other normal functions:

Vitamin B1 (thiamin): helps maintain the normal function of the nervous and digestive systems and the heart. Thiamine deficiency can cause beriberi.
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin): helps maintain healthy skin, eyes, and mouth and is also involved in cellular respiration. Lack of riboflavin can cause symptoms such as mouth ulcers and tongue inflammation.
Vitamin B3 (niacin): helps maintain the normal health of muscles, the nervous system, and the skin and is also involved in cellular respiration. Niacin deficiency can cause dementia and dermatitis.
Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid): helps maintain healthy skin, hair, eyes, and liver and is also involved in energy metabolism. Pantothenic acid deficiency can cause dermatitis and anemia.
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine): helps synthesize neurotransmitters and red blood cells, supports the immune system, and assists in metabolism of protein, carbohydrates, and fats. Pyridoxine deficiency can cause skin inflammation and anemia.
Vitamin B7 (biotin): helps maintain healthy skin, hair, and nails and is also involved in metabolism. Biotin deficiency can cause skin inflammation and hair loss.
Vitamin B9 (folic acid): helps to maintain normal fetal growth and development and is also involved in red blood cell synthesis and DNA synthesis. Folic acid deficiency can cause fetal neural tube abnormalities and anemia.
Vitamin B12 (also known as cyanocobalamin): helps to maintain the normal function of the nervous system and blood. Its deficiency can cause damage to the nervous system, manifesting as numbness in the hands and feet, loss of balance, and memory loss. B12 is also involved in red blood cell production, and its deficiency can cause anemia.

Vitamin C

This vitamin participates in the synthesis of collagen, which helps maintain the youth and health of the body’s skin, bones, and other tissues; has antioxidant properties that help prevent or delay cardiovascular disease and other diseases caused by oxidative stress; promotes the absorption of iron ions to prevent iron deficiency anemia; reduces the risk of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration; and relieves cold and flu symptoms. Deficiency or inadequate intake can lead to iron deficiency anemia, decreased immunity, skin problems, and scurvy.

Vitamin D: promotes the absorption of calcium and phosphorus and helps maintain bone health. It also regulates the immune system, cardiovascular health, and muscle function. Vitamin D deficiency can lead to osteochondrosis in children and osteoporosis in adults. Its deficiency can also increase the risk of rectal, prostate, breast, and lung cancers.

Vitamin E: helps protect heart health and reduce the risk of heart disease; improves immune system function; promotes blood circulation; acts as a powerful antioxidant to scavenge free radicals in the body; and helps protect skin health and reduce damage caused by UV radiation. Vitamin E deficiency may lead to neurological dysfunction, decreased immune function, increased risk of infection, and symptoms such as muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, and retinopathy.

Vitamin K: promotes blood clotting, maintains bone health, and prevents calcification of blood vessels and risk of cardiovascular disease. Vitamin K deficiency can lead to blood clotting disorders, easy bleeding, osteoporosis, and fractures.