Vitamin Deficiency Symptoms

Submitted by Nick on January 31, 2011

Vitamin Deficiency Symptoms

Vitamins are an important component of a good diet. The human body has many different functions that take place simultaneously throughout the day. These functions require energy and also various substances to be present in the body. The body passes these substances around in the blood. However, to get into the blood in the first place, the substance must be consumed by the individual.

Vitamins are very important for the human body to perform its various different functions. The number of different vitamins required by an individual often makes it complicated for one to select a diet. However, using a simple chart, one can figure out the vitamin content of various different foods which can then be consumed by the individual.

The quantity of vitamins required by the human body is often very small. However, without even this small quantity, the body will be in a condition where it suffers from vitamin deficiency symptoms. Vitamin deficiency symptoms obviously vary based on which vitamin one is talking about.

Some vitamin deficiency symptoms are extremely minor and are therefore often ignored by the individual. Other vitamin deficiency symptoms are extreme and can even cause life threatening conditions. One of the most famous vitamin deficiency symptoms is that of scurvy, a disease that used to affect sailors in times gone by.

This condition occurred because these sailors could not store fruits for long periods of time. Therefore, they suffered from a deficiency of vitamin c. This caused scurvy, a condition which claimed many lives. The use of lime and lime juice was employed to prevent this condition from occurring.

Vitamin d is one of the many different vitamins required by the human body. This vitamin is found in foods such as fish, dairy products and certain specifically fortified cereals. Vitamin d is important for the body functions associated with calcium. Calcium is a mineral that is needed for good bone development. It goes without saying that the health of the skeletal system is extremely vital to the overall health of an individual. Vitamin d deals not only with the absorption of calcium but also with the maintenance of the right level of calcium in the blood. It also deals with the maintenance of phosphorous in the blood. The association of vitamin d with calcium and the bones means that the most obvious among vitamin d deficiency symptoms in adults is that of osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a condition where the bones in an individual’s body are weak. This occurs because of improper bone density. Therefore, the long term vitamin d deficiency symptoms in adults include joint and bone pain. Vitamin d deficiency symptoms are avoidable if the individual follows a healthy diet and makes sure that the vitamin is consumed regularly. One may also notice at some point in life that there are signs of vitamin deficiency symptoms beginning to occur. When this happens, corrective action can be taken in a timely manner to ensure that one does not suffer from long lasting effects of this vitamin deficiency.

Vitamin and mineral deficiency symptoms may be noticed in the form of various different small signs in the body. Discoloration of the nails and brittle nails are a sign of vitamin deficiency. Therefore, an individual should have regular health checkups to ensure that no vitamin deficiency symptoms are ignored for long periods of time. It is entirely possible to suffer from a vitamin deficiency over a short period of time and to recover from this situation. However, long term damage to the body from deficient quantities of vitamins is likely to lead to permanent health problems.