Are you looking for the best sources of vitamins?  You do not have to look far because the food you eat everyday has all the essential micronutrients that your body needs.  Nature has given mankind nutritious foods that can supply your essential vitamin needs.  Nature also enabled your body to produce vitamin D with the help of sunlight.

Vitamins are organic compounds which can be synthesized by your body.  They are needed for the proper growth of organisms and to support several body functions.  Without them, your body may not function properly.  You can consider them as the fuel that keeps your body systems running.

Vitamins are either water soluble or fat soluble.  Vitamin C and B-complex are water soluble. It means your body can not store them and must be replaced everyday.  Your body easily excretes these water soluble micronutrients through urine.

Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat soluble micronutrients and they are stored in the fat tissues.  The stored micronutrients are used to support essential body functions.  There is no need to consume extra amounts of fat soluble micronutrients because your body has the ability to store them for future use.

Getting Your Vitamins from Dietary Sources

Foods are essential for life.  Your body needs food to get the necessary macronutrients and micronutrients.  You can not survive without food because it is the main source of vitamins and minerals.

Developing the right diet therefore is essential if you want to get the right amount of micronutrients needed for good health.  For example, vitamin A can be found in milk, eggs, liver, dark green vegetables, carrots, mangoes, papayas, oranges, pumpkin, potatoes, and kale.

Vitamin B-complex on the other hand is present in red meat, poultry, fish, cheese, dairy products, cereals, and grains.  Ascorbic acid or vitamin C can be found in great abundance in fruits especially citrus.  It is also found in broccoli, pepper, tomatoes, and spinach.

Vitamins E, D, and K are found in green vegetables, meat, fishes, poultry products, and natural oils.  If you notice, all food groups contain essential micronutrients.  If you develop a healthy and well balanced diet, then you can easily supply your body with much needed micronutrients.

Getting Vitamin D from the Sun

Vitamin D is unique because it can be produced naturally by your body.  The only requirement is to expose your skin to good sunlight.  The ultraviolet rays of the sun can trigger a chemical reaction that could release up to 10,000 IU of vitamin D into the bloodstream.  The D vitamin will be stored in your body to help facilitate the proper absorption of calcium and phosphorous.

So apart from foods, the sun is also a good source of vitamin D (interesting to know is that the Danish term is D Vitamin fødevarer).  A few minutes of sun exposure without sun block would be enough to supply your daily vitamin D requirements.

So if you are looking for natural sources of vitamins, then nature has provided you with two options.  You can get essential vitamins from the foods you eat everyday and you can absorb vitamin D through regular sun exposure. Find out more about vitamin D from this great source.