If you’re trying to eat healthier, there are a ton of books available out there to help guide you into healthier eating. Now, I do not profess to be a cook by any stretch of the imagination, so when I ventured out to look for a cookbook, I looked for something that had simple recipes- something that I felt confident I couldn’t screw up. In the process, I not only found such a cookbook, but I also managed to find one that provided a few tips on healthy eating as well. The book I’m talking about is called Superfoods- Cook Your Way to Health by Jyl Steinback. That being said, here are some things I picked up related to vitamins and the food sources in which they can be found:
25 Vitamins & Minerals and Their Food Sources
Vitamins
- Vitamin A: carrots, sweet potatoes, dark green leafy veggies, pumpkin
- Vitamin D: sunlight; dairy products, cod liver oil
- Vitamin E: veggie oils, nuts and seeds, wheat germ
- Vitamin K: green leafy veggies, cabbage, cauliflower, asparagus, broccoli, chickpeas, green tea
- Vitamin C: orange juice, brussel sprouts, citrus fruits, melons, broccoli, strawberries, cabbage
- Vitamin B1 (Thiamin): legumes, whole grains, enriched cereals
- Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): dairy products, whole grains, enriched bread & cereal, green veggies
- Vitamin B3 (Niacin): lean meat, dried beans and peas, brewer’s yeast, poultry, tuna, whole grains, brown rice, enriched bread and cereal
- Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine): salmon, nuts, wheat germ, brown rice, peas, beans, nuts
- Vitamin B12: clams, oysters, salmon, sardines, tempeh
- Pantothenic Acid: meat, eggs, whole-grain cereals, legumes
- Folate: leafy green veggies, legumes, brewer’s yeast, beans, nuts, liver
- Biotin: oatmeal, soybeans, green veggies, liver
Minerals
- Magnesium: bananas, dried beans and peas, whole grains, dark green leafy veggies, nuts
- Phosphorus: lean meat, fish, poultry, dairy products, legumes, eggs, nuts
- Calcium: dairy products, dark green leafy veggies, broccoli, shrimp, salmon, legumes, tofu, fortified orange juice, clams
- Potassium: bananas, potatoes, spinach, broccoli, chickpeas, strawberries
- Chromium: lean meat, orange juice, whole grains, brewer’s yeast, vegetable oil
- Copper: shellfish, whole grains, legumes, nuts
- Fluoride: fluoridated water and toothpastes, seafood
- Iron: lean red meat, organ meat, legumes, enriched cereals and breads, dried fruits
- Manganese: tea, spinach, raisins
- Selenium: organ meat, seafood, whole-grains, potato with skin, turkey, chicken breast, wheat germ
- Zinc: lean meat, poultry, fish, whole-grain cereals and breads
- Boron: apples, dates, nuts
Few of us know what we are capable of doing…we have never pushed ourselves hard enough to find out.
-Alfred A. Montapert