Vitamins that help you lose weight

Did you know that the human body requires 13 vitamins to function properly?

Did you know that all 13 essential vitamins are found in whole foods?

According to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, “Nutrients should be obtained primarily through food consumption. Food provides a variety of nutrients and other compounds that may have beneficial health effects. Dietary supplements, while recommended in some cases, they cannot replace a healthy diet.” In layman’s terms, this means that by increasing your intake of healthy, nutrient-rich foods, you are guaranteed to lose weight and speed up your metabolism.

B vitamins

Of the 13 essential vitamins, the B vitamins are the most commonly linked to weight loss. To better understand this relationship, let’s look at family B itself. It contains a total of eight vitamins B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), niacin, B6 (pyridoxine), folic acid, B12 (cobalamin), biotin and pantothenic. The B vitamins serve in a number of different capacities and perform a number of functions, including creating new blood cells, increasing energy, and regulating metabolism.

With regards to metabolism, the B vitamins are especially important so much so that many weight loss clinics will offer weight loss patients B12 injections to help them progress through their weight loss period. For best results, the B vitamins should be consumed collectively. Developing a diet that contains foods rich in vitamin B such as dairy products, egg yolks, meat, fish, leafy vegetables, and legumes will certainly improve your chances of boosting your metabolism.

Vitamin C

Along with vitamin E, vitamin C aids in the antioxidant process and can help prevent cell-damaging oxidation. Vitamin C also serves as a facilitator for the absorption of complementary vitamins and minerals, including calcium, iron, and folcacine. Vitamin C has also been linked to healthy hormones, bones, blood vessels, collagen, and teeth. Aside from the nutritional benefits, vitamin C is also essential for improving your immune system, which is absolutely necessary for weight loss. For best results, consider incorporating the following vitamin C-fortified foods into your diet: dark green vegetables and broccoli, red and green bell peppers, citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruit, and tomatoes.

Vitamin D

Through recent research, vitamin D has been cited as a contributing factor to greater weight loss success. Be clear that vitamin D is not the answer to all your weight loss problems, but it can change and improve some things. In particular, for people with inadequate vitamin D levels who are on a weight loss program, supplementation with the vitamin can help create balance and increase weight loss success. Of course, this would be done in accordance with other routine weight loss techniques like exercising and eating healthy foods.

Like vitamin C, vitamin D also helps with calcium absorption, which is critical for preventing osteoporosis and maintaining strong bone density. In the most natural source, vitamin D can be created through 10 to 20 minutes of direct sunlight a few (three times) per week. If it’s the winter season or if you’re not a big fan of the sun, you can also get a decent amount of food like cereals, bread, milk, yogurt, fish liver oils, catfish, tuna, herring, and salmon.

Vitamin E

Like the B vitamins and vitamin C, vitamin E has also been identified as a strong antioxidant and a contributing factor in establishing an efficient metabolism rate. Additionally, vitamin E also boosts the immune system and has been linked to the prevention of heart disease and, in some cases, cancer. Healthy skin is another benefit of vitamin E. Vitamin E will help stimulate skin elasticity, which for someone looking to trim inches is a good thing. Your best bet for best results is to look for vitamin E found in unsaturated fats, including green leafy vegetables like lettuce or broccoli, vegetable oil, whole grains, avocado, germ oil wheat, seeds and nuts.