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Vitamins and minerals are an essential part of our diet, and it is important to ensure we are getting the right amount from our food. Sometimes it is necessary, however, to take multivitamin supplements to provide our body with what it needs. While supplements can never replace a healthy, balanced diet, here are our picks of the best vitamins and minerals for you to add to your daily routine to maintain good health and regular body functions.
While most people can get the Vitamin D they require from sunlight, some may not be as lucky (especially living in Ireland with its unpredictable weather!). Vitamin D is an important vitamin with several important functions. It helps to regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, which are needed to keep your bones, muscles, and teeth healthy, and it also helps to support the immune system.
Vitamin D can be found in a small number of foods such as oily fish, eggs or fortified breakfast cereals but there are many daily supplements available from Phelans Pharmacy which you can take, especially during the colder, winter months when there will be less natural sunlight.
Vitamin C is an essential vitamin, which cannot be produced by our bodies. Therefore, we need to look to our diets or to supplements for us to get the right amount of Vitamin C that we need. Vitamin C helps to protect our cells and keeps them healthy and it is also necessary for healthy connective tissue to give support and structure to other organs and body tissue. A lack of vitamin C can cause scurvy but luckily, this vitamin can be found in many fruits and vegetables including oranges, peppers, broccoli, kiwis, strawberries, sweet potatoes and more.
Here at Phelans Pharmacy, we stock a number of vitamin C supplements if you are finding that the daily recommended dose of 40mg for adults is difficult to reach through diet alone.
There are many different types of B vitamins, and they play an important role in cell health, brain function, growth of red blood cells and more. To ensure you are getting enough B vitamins, it is important to check your diet as these vitamins can be found in a wide variety of foods. Milk, cheese, eggs, fish (such as tuna and salmon), meat (such as chicken and red meat), dark green vegetables, grains and more contain different B vitamins which are essential to your diet.
You can also take a supplement, called B-Complex which contains all the B vitamins in one daily tablet.
Folic Acid is one of the B vitamins, and as our bodies cannot produce it naturally, it is an essential nutrient that we need to obtain from diet or food supplements. It is especially important for unborn babies as it helps the central nervous system to develop and helps to reduce the risk of spina bifida. This nutrient is found in small amounts of certain foods such as broccoli, peas, chickpeas and brown rice. It is important for adults to have 0.2mg of folic acid a day but for women who are pregnant or may be considering having a baby, the daily intake should be increased to 0.4mg (400 microgram) a day from the time you stop using contraception until the 12th week of your pregnancy.
Here at Phelans Pharmacy, we have different supplements to ensure you can add folic acid to your daily diet, and you can speak to a member of our staff to find the best one for you.
Omega-3 fatty acids are essential healthy fats that our bodies cannot produce, and so it is important to get Omega-3 from our diets or from supplements. There are three main types of Omega-3 fatty acids: ALA, EPA and DHA. ALA can be found in plant oils such as flaxseed while DHA and EPA can be found in fish and seafood. Omega-3 fatty acids contribute to the healthy function and maintenance of the brain, retina, and heart.
Browse our selection of healthy fish oils and omegas online or instore.
Iron is an extremely important mineral for our bodies, as it carries oxygen in red blood cells throughout the body so that our cells can produce energy. If you do not have enough iron in your diet, a condition known as iron deficiency anaemia can develop, resulting in fatigue, lack of energy, dizziness, and pale skin. There are many good sources of iron in foods, such as meat, beans, nuts, wholegrains, dried fruit, and dark green, leafy vegetables. It is especially important for women to keep a regular intake of iron where possible, either through diet or using iron supplements.
Zinc:
Zinc is called as essential trace mineral, meaning we need only very small amounts to maintain health but as our body cannot product zinc it is important to make sure we are receiving these small amounts in our food or with supplements. Zinc is needed for many processes in our bodies, including healing wounds, making new cells and enzymes, thyroid function and more. Zinc is found in a variety of foods such as oysters, red meat, poultry, dairy products, and wholegrains. While you can get your recommended daily zinc intake through diet, there are also a number of supplements and multivitamins available from Phelans Pharmacy to ensure this essential trace mineral continues to contribute to your health and wellbeing.
We all know that calcium is a necessary mineral, vital for strong bones and teeth, regulating muscle contractions (including our heartbeat) and ensuring that blood clots normally. Our bodies cannot produce its own calcium, and did you know that when we do not get the calcium we need from diet or supplements, it is taken from our bones? If this continues to happen, bones can get weaker and become easier to break.
Calcium is found in dairy products, green leafy vegetables, nuts and other foods but there are also a range of supplements available to ensure your body is getting the daily recommended calcium it needs to say healthy.
If you decide you need to start adding supplements to your diet, it is important to research the recommended dose of these essential minerals and vitamins beforehand, as taking too much of a mineral or vitamin can also cause your body harm. You can shop a wide range of vitamins, minerals and supplements online or in-store at any Phelans Pharmacy, and our helpful staff are always available to help with any questions you might have.