How to Get All of the Vitamins & Minerals You Need Through Diet Alone

A healthy diet is paramount to good health. Many doctors recommend extra supplementation of vitamins and minerals to make up for nutritional deficits a basic diet may not provide. However, if a daily menu is carefully planned, most of the recommended daily requirements of vitamins and minerals can be obtained through diet alone without the need for additional supplementation. In order to achieve this goal, you must first understand which vitamins you need every day and which foods are the riches sources of them. This guide will help you plan.

Instructions

• 1

  Learn what you need every day. Vitamin requirements are not one-size-fits-all. There are vitamins that benefit men but are not necessary for women. Conversely, women have different requirements based on age, time of life and if they are pregnant. Even your weight determines how much your body needs. The USDA provides this interactive tool to calculate what you need on their website.

• 2

  Peppers are high in B12

  Get familiar with the foods that are the most bountiful source of the vitamins you need. Your best choices for foods rich in Vitamin A and beta carotene are yams, carrots, dark, leafy greens and spinach. To get enough B vitamins, especially B6 and B12, add whole grains, rice bran, paprika, chili powder, nuts, seeds, pork, shellfish, liver, beef, lamb, aged cheese and eggs. Looking for vitamin C? Look no further than bright colored vegetables such as yellow and red peppers, dark greens, broccoli and cauliflower, oranges and berries. Vitamin E is found in spinach, olives, nuts, and sunflower seeds.

• 3

  Buy the freshest vegetables for the best vitamin punch

  Eat these foods and get the vitamins you need. Be sure to prepare them properly. Eating the freshest vegetables ensures you will get the greatest amount of vitamins. The longer vegetables sit around they lose their nutritional punch. Don't overcook your food because it can break down the vitamin content. Try to go raw when possible for the highest vitamin benefit.