Back to School with your Vitamin A, B, C’s...
Back to School with your Vitamin A, B, C's...
September and school are intrinsically linked in most people's memories, although whether those memories are good or bad can vary hugely from one person to the next. What is certain is that the experience of settling back into school - or indeed the office after a summer holiday - can be made infinitely more positive if you're nutritionally prepared!
Most of us know about the importance of carbohydrates for providing energy, and protein for growth and repair of body tissue, but many of us are on shakier ground when it comes to explaining vitamins. Unlike carbs and protein, vitamins are needed in quite small quantities and they don't provide us with any energy; however, what they do do is to facilitate the multitude of biochemical processes that go on inside us each and every day.
A lack of vitamins can leave you or your little one back at school with a wide range of symptoms, including tiredness, irritability and forgetfulness - often the kind of complaints we blame on the workplace itself, when really diet is the culprit! So where do we get our vitamins? Although most foods provide vitamins to some degree, the most important ones are fruit, vegetables, cereals, beans, nuts and fish. The following simple chart doesn't tell the complete story, but, if you're rushing to get to work or get the kids off to school, it'll certainly get you on the right track!
| Vitamin | Food Sources | Symptoms caused by a lack of the vitamin |
| A | Oily fish (e.g. mackerel, sardines, salmon); fruit & veg (e.g. apricots, broccoli & cranberries) | Coughs, colds, poor eye sight |
| B | There are a variety of different B vitamins, which nature intends us to have in balance. The best sources of these are oats, beans, lentils, nuts, and fruit and veg, such as avocados, bananas and currants. | Tiredness and irritability |
| C | The best sources of Vitamin C are citrus fruits and green, leafy vegetables. | Coughs, colds, anxiety, depression |
| D | Oily fish (e.g. mackerel, sardines, salmon); dark, leafy green vegetables | Weak bones and muscles |
| E | Nuts, vegetable oils, green vegetables | Tiredness, slow healing of wounds and burns |
Customers who get Nutrichef's sports training meals or weight loss meals delivered to their home are pleasantly surprised at the huge variety of ingredients we provide - we provide around ten different fruit and veg every day and over 150 different ingredients on a one month meal plan!
September and school are intrinsically linked in most people's memories, although whether those memories are good or bad can vary hugely from one person to the next. What is certain is that the experience of settling back into school - or indeed the office after a summer holiday - can be made infinitely more positive if you're nutritionally prepared!Read also:
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