Vitamins

Byline: DR. S.M. ALAM Vitamins and minerals make our bodies work properly. Vitamins fall into two categories: fat soluble and water soluble. The fat-soluble vitamins - A, D, E, and K - dissolve in fat and can be stored in our body. The water-soluble vitamins - C and the B-complex vitamins (such as vitamins B6, B12, niacin, riboflavin, and folate) - need to be dissolved in water before our body can absorb them. Vitamins are organic substances (made by plants or animals) and minerals are inorganic elements that come from the soil and water and are absorbed by plants or eaten by animals. Our body needs larger amounts of some minerals, such as calcium to grow and stay healthy. Other minerals like iron, manganese, boron, copper, iodine, iron, selenium, and zinc are called trace minerals because you only need very small amounts of them each day.