Knowra Vitamin Vitamin A vitamin is an organic micronutrient required in small amounts for normal growth and metabolism. Humans obtain most vitamins from food because the body cannot make enough of them.
Water-soluble vitamin : A vitamin that dissolves in water, including vitamin C and the B vitamins. These vitamins circulate in watery body fluids and are generally stored less extensively.
Avitaminosis : A disease or disorder caused by severe deficiency of one or more vitamins. Insufficient intake can disrupt the normal processes vitamins support.
Vitamin A : A group of fat-soluble compounds needed for vision, immune function, and cell differentiation. Its role in vision makes deficiency especially damaging to the eyes.
Casimir Funk : A Polish-American biochemist who proposed the term “vitamine” in 1912. His name for these dietary factors gave the concept its modern label.
Mineral : An inorganic element required in the diet for structural, metabolic, or regulatory functions. Minerals are essential micronutrients too, but they are inorganic rather than organic.
Fat-soluble vitamin : A vitamin that dissolves in fat, including vitamins A, D, E, and K. Dietary fat helps these vitamins enter the body, where they can be stored.
Hypervitaminosis : A disorder caused by excessive accumulation of a vitamin, usually a fat-soluble one. Unlike deficiency, excessive intake can make certain vitamins toxic.
Vitamin C : A water-soluble nutrient involved in collagen formation and antioxidant reactions. Severe deficiency causes scurvy, historically common on long sea voyages.
Christiaan Eijkman : A Dutch physician whose work on beriberi helped reveal the role of dietary factors. Experiments with polished and unpolished rice pointed toward a missing nutrient.
Macronutrient : A nutrient, such as carbohydrate, fat, or protein, needed in comparatively large amounts. Vitamins support metabolism in small amounts rather than supplying most dietary energy.
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