Vitality Vitamins: How To Take Them Correctly And Their Daily Intake

Vitamins and minerals play an important role in ensuring the normal flow of major metabolic pathways in the human body. They take an active part in the mechanisms of energy production, thereby supporting the functioning of cells and tissues. They are also necessary for oxygen transport, as well as for the regulation of the activity of neurons of the central nervous system, which is of critical importance in the context of cognitive processes, as well as mental and physical fatigue.

Causes of Chronic Fatigue

So a logical question arises: how does the heart muscle, along with the central nervous system, manage to break out of the last places into the winners? This, at first glance, paradox is connected with the most impressive (compared to their “competitors”) mass: for example, for an adult, the weight of muscles is about 26.3 kg, and the brain is about 1.33 kg, which makes them the most metabolically active even under the condition lack of physical activity.

It is quite natural that with an increase in the load, the need for energy for the muscles increases significantly. However, there is an amazing pattern or, more correctly, a wonderful consequence of the whole genius of the human body: despite potentially significant and large fluctuations in energy demands, the available energy in the muscles on a global scale remains constant - this is a demonstration of amazing and precise regulation of the rate of energy generation. according to the current needs of the body.

In particular, this is the basis for one of the most popular hypotheses that explains the cause of muscle weakness: the restriction of energy supply. So, say, according to the results of recent studies, such a pathology occurs when the metabolism is disturbed in fibers that are especially sensitive to fatigue, which, moreover, have a high rate of contraction - a decrease in productivity is observed.

Let's get back to the nervous system. The brain of an average adult usually accounts for about 2% of the total body weight. Such a small size is incomparable with the need for energy of this organ - and this is a significant difference between humans and vertebrate animals that do not belong to primates. So, let's say, the latter allocate only 2 to 8% of their basal metabolism for the needs of the nervous system, while in humans these figures are several times higher. Scientists suggest that this is due to the large number of neurons that nature has endowed us with. Such a high consumption of glucose, the main energy substrate, provides the phenomenon of neurotransmission - the transfer of chemical signals between two nerve cells through specific biologically active substances - neurotransmitters.

There is another big difference between skeletal muscles and the brain: the former have a significant supply of glucose - their pantries are prudently filled with heavy long chains of glycogen, which, unlike the liver, they greedily spend purely on their needs, not wanting to share with other organs and tissues. At the same time, the reserves of the central nervous system are very scarce - that is why the functioning of nerve cells largely depends on the energy substrates coming from the blood.

And here, too, not everything is so simple: organic substances, first of all, need to overcome a kind of passport control at the border of blood vessels and nervous tissue - the blood-brain barrier. For example, the significant sizes of fatty acids associated with large protein molecules are simply unable to overcome the fine-mesh structure of the border separating them from neurons.

Another fact that cannot be ignored is the constant activity of the brain. That is, if skeletal muscles can afford to “rest” in the absence of physical activity, then the central nervous system always works - it is a constant action generator that controls all body functions and at all levels of its existence.

The researchers emphasize with firm certainty that even during sleep, the electrochemical activity of neurons is noted, so mental work adds less than 5% to the basic activity of CNS cells.

Vitamins and minerals for vitality

1. Iron

   The central nervous system, like muscle tissue, is highly dependent on the gas composition of the blood, which is largely determined by the concentration of red blood cells and the degree of their saturation with hemoglobin. So, let's say, the brain consumes about 3.5 ml of oxygen per 100 g of tissue per minute - and this is about 20% of the total requirement of the whole organism! Thus, chronic hypoxia invariably results in neuronal dysfunction and impaired intellectual activity as such.

   At rest, the demands of muscle tissue are much more modest: only 1 ml of oxygen per 100 g of tissue - and this is in 60 seconds! However, it is worth exposing them to a load, as the need for this gas increases many times, increasing almost up to 50 times. So, anemia affects not only mental work, but also physical, causing feelings of fatigue and exhaustion.

    

   Sports are not recommended for patients who are in a state of iron deficiency - including latent. As a rule, during an active load, oxygen already does not have time to reach the muscle fibers - and when the reserve reserves (supported by the breakdown of myoglobin) are used up, the anaerobic pathway for energy production is launched. Lactic acid is formed, the accumulation of which is associated with the so-called “krepatura”.

   Subsequently, lactate leaves the muscle fibers and is sent to the systemic circulation, from where it enters the liver, the central factory of metabolism. Here, lactic acid is converted to glucose and returned back to the skeletal muscles.

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   However, with excessive intake of lactate into the blood (the production of which is noted with insufficient “supply” of oxygen in other organs), one of the unshakable factors of homeostasis, the acid-base balance, is disturbed. The body develops acidosis.

   In addition, it should be borne in mind that iron is not only a part of hemoglobin, but also a component of specific rings of numerous heme enzymes, in particular, cytochromes involved in energy production and detoxification reactions occurring in the liver.

    

2. B vitamins

   All water-soluble vitamins, with the exception of folic acid, take part in various stages of the energy production process, which is most clearly demonstrated by the picture below.

   Insufficient intake of any of the B vitamins affects the functioning of a well-honed energy production system, slowing down the rate of the corresponding biochemical reactions, causing serious consequences for the whole organism.

   So, say, it is the active forms of thiamine (B1) that prevent the accumulation of lactic acid, contributing to the conversion of pyruvic acid, the product of which (acetyl-CoA) is included in the Krebs cycle. At the same time, without riboflavin (B2), it is impossible to imagine not only the normal course of the citric acid cycle, but also the final stage of energy production in mitochondria - the transfer of protons and electrons along the respiratory chain built into the inner membrane of our small power plants.

    

   Metabolically active derivatives of vitamin B6 are involved in the synthesis of heme, a non-protein component of the hemoglobin molecule. In addition, they take part in the transformation of glucose, largely mediating the implementation of such processes for its production as the breakdown of glycogen (glycogenolysis) and gluconeogenesis, and are also involved in the synthesis of vitamin B3 from the amino acid tryptophan.

   Biotin or vitamin B8 ensures the synthesis of fatty acids and regulates their availability for further “burning” in the mitochondrial ovens, and is also involved in the breakdown of branched chain amino acids, which contributes a lot to the overall mechanisms of energy production.

    

3. Vitamin C

   Ascorbic acid is involved in the formation of adrenal hormones, the release of which activates the pathways for the formation and production of energy (the notorious “fight or flight” reaction).

   In addition, it is necessary for the synthesis of a specific carrier of fatty acids, which transfers them from the cytoplasm to the place of combustion - mitochondria. Thus, it is vitamin C deficiency, the direct consequence of which is a decrease in the production of the carnitine transporter, that is one of the factors in muscle weakness and myalgia.

    

4. Magnesium has got one of the key roles in the production of energy and its use. The fact is that the functional form of ATP is formed only when this high-energy compound binds with magnesium ions and the formation of the corresponding complexes.

   In addition, this element has a regulatory effect on some enzymes of the Krebs cycle, and also delivers ATP from mitochondria, the place of its direct production, to the cell cytosol.

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   Magnesium is not part of the antioxidant system, our body's main line of defense against free radicals. However, numerous studies have shown a surprising relationship between the deficiency of this mineral and the development of oxidative stress. It is assumed that this is based on inflammation, which predisposes neutrophils and other cells of the immune system to produce reactive oxygen species, which leads to endothelial damage and dysfunction, which, by the way, is still considered dominant in the context of the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.

    

5. Zinc is another element necessary for the prevention and prevention of oxidative stress in the body. It is involved in the regulation of some enzymes, inducing their activity and thereby causing the trapping of free oxygen forms that can damage extra- and intracellular structures, ultimately leading to cell death.

   Interestingly, zinc also modulates the activity of the main pro-inflammatory signaling pathway, thus indirectly influencing the expression of many genes involved in the immune response.

   In some "zinc-containing" neurons, this element regulates the transmission of chemical signals - in other words, controls neurotransmission. However, an increase in its concentration in the structures of the brain causes the death of nerve cells due to the neurotoxicity it exerts.

    

Vitamins and minerals in foods. Natural Energy Sources

Fruits and vegetables have historically featured prominently in various dietary recommendations, all because of their high concentrations of antioxidants, vitamins (especially A and C), minerals, and electrolytes.

Previously, it was customary to divide them into categories based on the color scheme: for example, it was assumed that orange-colored foods are rich in beta-carotenoids - the direct precursors of retinol, which is part of the visual pigment and largely prevents the development of oxidative stress. Over time, scientists came to the conclusion that such a classification has become obsolete: for example, it was determined that a lot of carotenoids are also concentrated in dark green vegetables.

First of all, interest in fruits and vegetables is mediated by their phytochemical composition - the content in them of biologically active substances of various spectrums of action:

• polyphenols;

• phytoestrogens;

• antioxidants.

Numerous works, for example, note a positive correlation between the inclusion of berries in the diet and a decrease in systolic blood pressure.

Researchers were no less attracted to the study of grapes and the red wine produced from them, especially in the context of the “French paradox”. It turned out that despite the high consumption of fat-rich foods in this nation, the low incidence of cardiovascular disease was largely due to the flavonoids concentrated in grapes. The polyphenols in its composition suppressed lipid peroxidation, thus minimizing damage to cell membranes, inhibited the “gluing” of platelets, thereby improving the functioning of the endothelium, the inner lining of blood vessels.

How to take vitamins correctly

Water-soluble vitamins must be taken separately from fat-soluble ones, not combined with tea, coffee or cocoa: the biologically active compounds contained in these drinks can inhibit their absorption and further transformation.

On the other hand, if you have impaired bile flow due to the presence of calculi in the relevant ducts and / or helminthic invasion, you must initially restore it before buying a complex of fat-soluble vitamins, or consider prescribing transdermal forms.

Please do not forget that the work to restore deficiencies must be comprehensive: changes must be made to your diet, daily routine and physical activity. Supplements for that and supplements to be an auxiliary tool in working with your health.

Thus, it is always necessary to take into account not only your metabolic characteristics, the presence of genetically determined fermentopathy and chronic inflammation, but also the pharmacokinetics of the vitamins themselves and their active metabolites.

Below we have given a convenient tablet, using which you can easily avoid the simultaneous intake of several vitamins that act as antagonists to each other.

Daily intake of vitamins and minerals