Welcome to Perfectly Natural Dog

Brown rice (or "hulled rice") is non-milled or partly milled rice, a kind of whole grain. Brown Rice is a natural grain that remains unbleached. It has a mild nutty flavor, is chewier than white rice. Today brown rice is a staple for health conscious eaters who believe food should be consumed in its most natural state. Brown rice and white rice have similar amounts of calories, carbohydrates, and protein, although many types of brown rice contain more fat than white rice. The main differences between the two forms of rice lie in processing and nutritional content. When only the outermost layer of a grain of rice (the husk) is removed, brown rice is produced. To produce white rice, the next layers underneath the husk (the bran layer and the germ) are removed, leaving mostly the starchy endosperm. Several vitamins and dietary minerals are lost in this removal and the subsequent polishing process. A part of these missing nutrients, such as Vitamin B1, Vitamin B3, and iron are sometimes added back into the white rice making it "enriched", as food suppliers in the US are required to do by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). One mineral not added back into white rice is magnesium; one cup (195 grams) of cooked long grain brown rice contains 84 mg of magnesium while one cup of white rice contains 19 mg. When the bran layer is removed to make white rice, the oil in the bran is also removed. Rice bran oil may help lower LDL cholesterol. Among other key sources of nutrition lost are small amounts of fatty acids and fiber. In addition to having greater nutritional value, brown rice is also said to be less constipating than white rice.

Brewer’s rice is the small milled fragments of rice kernels that have been separated from the larger kernels of milled rice.

Chicken fat is fat obtained (usually as a by-product) from chicken rendering and processing. Of animal-sourced substances, chicken fat is the highest in linoleic acid (over 23%). Tocopherols (or TCP) are a class of chemical compounds of which many have Vitamin E activity. It is a series of organic compounds consisting of various methylated phenols. Because the vitamin activity was first identified in 1936 from a dietary fertility factor in rats, it was given the name "tocopherol" from the Greek words “τοκος” [birth], and “φορειν”, [to bear or carry] meaning in sum "to carry a pregnancy," with the ending "-ol" signifying its status as a chemical alcohol. Tocotrienols, which are related compounds, may also have Vitamin E activity. All of these various derivatives with vitamin activity may correctly be referred to as "Vitamin E." Tocopherols and tocotrienols are fat-soluble antioxidants but also seem to have many other functions in the body.

Fish meal, or fishmeal, is a commercial product made from both whole fish and the bones and internal organs of processed fish. It is a brown powder or cake obtained by rendering, pressing the whole fish or fish trimmings to remove the fish oil. The major use of fish meal is as a high-protein supplement in aquaculture feed. The source of the fish meal used in Perfectly Natural Dog is Atlantic Menhaden.

Beet pulp is a by-product left over from the processing of sugar beets, it is fed to animals because it is high in energy and fiber, but low in non-structural carbohydrates.

Not a sugar source, beet pulp is an important source of fiber that helps maintain intestinal health and improves the ability to absorb ingredients.

Cellulose is an example of a non-fermentable fiber, the material that remains undigested as it passes through a dog’s intestines, providing bulk to move waste out. Beet pulp contains no toxins and is not harmful. It is a documented safe fiber source. Beet pulp does not affect coat color. There is nothing in beet pulp that can affect coat pigment.

Beet pulp does not contain sugar. By definition, beet pulp is the material left over after the sugar is removed from sugar beets. Therefore, beet pulp contains no sugar.

There is no evidence that beet pulp causes bloat. Bloat (gastric dilatation-volvulus or GDV) is related to a stomach defect that delays emptying. It is believed that bloat is not related to diet or ingredients, such as beet pulp. However, the cause of bloat remains unknown.

Dried potatoes are composed of potato by-products from a food processing plant. The main component is potato skins that have been steam extracted without the use of chemicals or artificial aids. Other components could be misshapen pieces as well as limited amounts of fryer skimmings. The product is mixed, dried, and cooled. Uncooled dry material is used as feedstock for the wet products going into the dryer. Dried Potato product is equal to corn in energy value while having 1-½ times the protein value. The heat treatment of the product greatly increases the bioavailability of the nutrients. Specific use recommendations depend on the species and size of animal being fed.

Yeast is a living microscopic organism, which converts sugar or starch into alcohol and carbon dioxide, which is why beer brewers, wine makers and bread bakers like it. Brewer's yeast is a non-leavening yeast used in brewing beer and can be eaten as a food supplement for its healthful properties (as you would wheat germ), unlike baker's yeast, which is used for leavening. Brewer's years has a bitter hops flavor. Nutritional yeast is similar to brewer's yeast, but not as bitter because it is grown on molasses. Brewer’s yeast is used instead of live yeast (i.e. baking yeast) as a food supplement because live yeasts continue to grow in the intestine and use up Vitamin B instead of replenishing it.

Barley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare. It serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting (in beer and whisky) and in health food. In 2007 ranking of cereal crops in the world, barley was fourth both in terms of quantity produced (136 million tons) and in area of cultivation (566,000 km²).

The common oat (Avena sativa) is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other grains). While oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats, one of the most common uses is as livestock feed. Oats make up a large part of the diet of horses and are regularly fed to cattle as well. Oats are also used in some brands of dog and chicken feed.

Sunflower oil is the non-volatile oil expressed from sunflower (Helianthus annuus) seeds. Sunflower oil is commonly used in food as a frying oil, and in cosmetic formulations as an emollient. There are several types of sunflower oils produced, such as high linoleic, high oleic and mid oleic. High linoleic sunflower oil typically has at least 69% linoleic acid. High oleic sunflower oil has at least 82% oleic acid. Variation in unsaturated fatty acids profile is strongly influenced by both genetics and climate. In the last decade high stearic sunflower lines have been developed in Spain to avoid the use of hydrogenated vegetable oils in food industry. Sunflower oil also contains lecithin, tocopherols, carotenoids and waxes. Sunflower oil's properties are typical of a vegetable triglyceride oil. Sunflower oil is produced from oil type sunflower seeds. Sunflower oil is light in taste and appearance and has a high Vitamin E content. It is a combination of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats with low saturated fat levels.

Flax seed is cold processed. Flax seed meal is a convenient way of obtaining many of the nutritional benefits of flax seeds, including dietary fiber, lignans, magnesium, zinc and mucilage. Flax seeds originated in the ancient Mid-East and were used in Biblical days as an important source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, including omega-3.

Of the 76 billion eggs consumed in 2004, more than 30 percent were in the form of egg products (eggs removed from their shells). Liquid, frozen, and dried egg products are widely used by the foodservice industry and as ingredients in other foods, such as prepared mayonnaise and ice cream. The term "egg products" refers to eggs that are removed from their shells for processing. The processing of egg products includes breaking eggs, filtering, mixing, stabilizing, blending, pasteurizing, cooling, freezing or drying, and packaging. This is done at United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)-inspected plants. Egg products include whole eggs, whites, yolks and various blends with or without non-egg ingredients that are processed and pasteurized and may be available in liquid, frozen, and dried forms. Egg products are not a new invention. Commercial egg drying began in St. Louis, Missouri, about 1880. The first commercial production of frozen whole eggs began in 1903; separated eggs, in 1912. 1951 saw the first commercial egg breaking machines. No-cholesterol refrigerated or frozen egg substitutes first became available to consumers in 1973. They consist of egg whites, artificial color, and other non-egg additives.

Sodium chloride, also known as common salt, table salt, or halite, is an ionic compound with the formula NaCl. Salt (sodium chloride) is the combination of the explosive element sodium and the toxic gas chlorine. These two otherwise lethal elements come together harmoniously to form a benign rock found in nature as halite. In its pure form, it consists of 60.67% chloride and 39.33% sodium.

Sodium chloride is the salt most responsible for the salinity of the ocean and the extracellular fluid of many multicellular organisms. As the major ingredient in edible salt, it is commonly used as a condiment and food preservative.

Commercially, salt is derived from three avenues: mining (rock salt), evaporation from underground brine deposits or solar evaporation of seawater (sea salt). Accounting for impurities and the addition of flow agents, most salt is traded at 95-98% purity. The salt commonly used in pet food is translucent to opaque white. The other form used in pet food is iodized salt; the addition of iodine is a means to prevent goiter. Sodium and chloride are considered essential minerals in dog and cat diets.

Greg Aldrich, Ph.D. says, "Salt has traditionally been used as a preservative for fish, meat and some vegetables. Now, it is used every day as a seasoning on human foods. This free use of salt as a seasoning is a fairly recent application in people's diets and has probably caused the greatest misunderstanding of its use in pet food. The consumer must be making the leap in logic that the mere presence of salt on the ingredient panel means the pet's food is being flavored with excessive amounts of salt.

"The flaw in this theory is that most pet foods do not rely on salt as a seasoning. If you have ever tasted pet food, you know one thing for sure: It is bland. For our palate, it could do with a bit of salt seasoning. But in pet food salt is primarily used to a level necessary to meet nutrient requirements.

Both sodium and chloride are considered essential minerals in dog and cat diets. Deficiencies in sodium and chloride result in problems with nervous signal transmission, low blood pressure, restlessness, increased heart rate and pasty or thick mucus. The requirements (on a diet dry matter basis) range between 0.06-0.30% for sodium and 0.10-0.45% for chloride depending on species and life stage."

Dr. Greg Aldrich is president of Pet Food & Ingredient Technology Inc., which facilitates innovations in foods and ingredients for companion animals.

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CaCO3. It is a common substance found in rock in all parts of the world, and is the main component of shells of marine organisms, snails, pearls, and eggshells. Calcium carbonate is the active ingredient in agricultural lime, and is usually the principal cause of hard water. It is commonly used medicinally as a calcium supplement or as an antacid. A form of food additive is designated as E170. It is used in some soy milk products as a source of dietary calcium; one study suggests that calcium carbonate might be as bioavailable as the calcium in cow's milk.

Medically it is used in the treatment of hypokalemia and associated conditions, for digitalis poisoning, and as an electrolyte replenisher. Potassium chloride has a crystalline structure like many other salts. Its structure is face-centered cubic. Its lattice constant is roughly 630 picometers. In chemistry and physics it is very commonly used as a standard, for example as a calibration standard solution in measuring electrical conductivity of (ionic) solutions, since carefully prepared KCl solutions have well-reproducible and well-repeatable measurable properties.

The carrot (Daucus carota subsp. sativus, Etymology: Middle French carotte, from Late Latin carota, from Greek karoton, originally from the Indoeuropean root ker- (horn), due to its horn-like shape) is a root vegetable, usually orange, purple, red, white, or yellow in color, with a crisp texture when fresh. The edible part of a carrot is a taproot. It is a domesticated form of the wild carrot Daucus carota, native to Europe and southwestern Asia. It has been bred for its greatly enlarged and more palatable, less woody-textured edible taproot, but is still the same species.

It is a biennial plant which grows a rosette of leaves in the spring and summer, while building up the stout taproot, which stores large amounts of sugars for the plant to flower in the second year. The flowering stem grows to about 1 meter (3 ft) tall, with an umbel of white flowers that produce a fruit called a mericarp by botanists, which is a type of schizocarp. The carrot gets its characteristic and bright orange color from ß-carotene, which is metabolized into Vitamin A in humans when bile salts are present in the intestines. Massive overconsumption of carrots can cause hypercarotenemia, a condition in which the skin turns orange (although hypercarotenemia is not itself dangerous unlike overdose of Vitamin A, which can cause liver damage). Carrots are also rich in dietary fiber, antioxidants, and minerals.

Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the genus Vaccinium subgenus Oxycoccos, or in some treatments, in the distinct genus Oxycoccos. They are found in acidic bogs throughout the cooler parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Cranberries are low, creeping shrubs or vines up to 2 m long and 5 to 20 cm in height; they have slender, wiry stems that are not thickly woody and have small evergreen leaves. The flowers are dark pink, with very distinct reflexed petals, leaving the style and stamens fully exposed and pointing forward. They are pollinated by domestic honeybees. The fruit is an epigynous berry that is larger than the leaves of the plant; it is initially white, but turns a deep red when fully ripe. It is edible, with an acidic taste that can overwhelm its sweetness.

Cranberries are a major commercial crop in certain American states and Canadian provinces (see "Cultivation and Uses" below). Most cranberries are processed into products such as juice, sauce, and sweetened dried cranberries (e.g. Craisins), with the remainder sold fresh to consumers. Cranberry sauce is regarded an indispensable part of traditional American and Canadian Thanksgiving menus and European winter festivals.

Since the early 21st century within the global functional food industry, there has been a rapidly growing recognition of cranberries for their consumer product popularity, nutrient content and antioxidant qualities, giving them commercial status as a "superfruit". Cranberries have moderate levels of Vitamin C, dietary fiber and the essential dietary mineral, manganese, as well as a balanced profile of other essential micronutrients. By measure of the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity with an ORAC score of 9,584 units per 100 g, cranberry ranks near the top of 277 commonly consumed foods in the United States.

The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum, syn. Lycopersicon lycopersicum & Lycopersicon esculentum) is an herbaceous, usually sprawling plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family, as are its close cousins potatoes, chili peppers, tobacco, eggplant and the poisonous belladonna. It is a perennial, often grown outdoors in temperate climates as an annual. Typically reaching to 1–3 meters (3–10 ft) in height, it has a weak, woody stem that often vines over other plants. The leaves are 10–25 centimeters (4–10 in) long, odd pinnate, with 5–9 leaflets on petioles, each leaflet up to 8 centimeters (3 in) long, with a serrated margin; both the stem and leaves are densely glandular-hairy. The flowers are 1–2 centimeters (0.4–0.8 in) across, yellow, with five pointed lobes on the corolla; they are borne in a cyme of 3–12 together. The tomato is native to South America. Genetic evidence shows that the progenitors of tomatoes were herbaceous green plants with small green fruit with a center of diversity in the highlands of Peru. These early Solanums diversified into the dozen or so species of tomato recognized today. One species, Solanum lycopersicum, was transported to Mexico where it was grown and consumed by prehistoric humans. The exact date of domestication is not known. Evidence supports the theory the first domesticated tomato was a little yellow fruit, ancestor of L. cerasiforme, grown by the Aztecs of Central Mexico who called it ‘xitomatl’, meaning plump thing with a navel, and later called tomatl by other Mesoamerican peoples. Aztec writings mention tomatoes were prepared with peppers, corn and salt, likely to be the original salsa recipe. Tomatoes are now eaten freely throughout the world, and their consumption is believed to benefit the heart among other things. They contain lycopene, one of the most powerful natural antioxidants, which, especially when tomatoes are cooked, has been found to help prevent prostate cancer. However, other research contradicts this claim. Lycopene has also been shown to improve the skin's ability to protect against harmful UV rays. Natural genetic variation in tomatoes and their wild relatives has given a genetic treasure trove of genes that produce lycopene, carotene, anthocyanin, and other antioxidants. Tomato varieties are available with double the normal Vitamin C (Doublerich), 40 times normal Vitamin A (97L97), high levels of anthocyanin (P20 Blue), and two to four times the normal amount of lycopene (numerous available cultivars with the high crimson gene).

The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop. In the UK, Australia, and New Zealand it is known as lucerne and as lucerne grass in south Asia. Alfalfa is a cool season perennial legume living from three to twelve years, depending on variety and climate. It resembles clover with clusters of small purple flowers. The plant grows to a height of up to 1 meter (3 ft), and has a deep root system sometimes stretching to 4.5 meters (15 ft). This makes it very resilient, especially to droughts. It has a tetraploid genome. The plant exhibits autotoxicity, which means that it is difficult for alfalfa seed to grow in existing stands of alfalfa. Therefore, it is recommended that alfalfa fields be rotated with other species (for example, corn or wheat) before reseeding. Like other legumes its root nodules contain bacteria, Sinorhizobium meliloti, with the ability to fix nitrogen, producing a high-protein feed regardless of available nitrogen in the soil. Its nitrogen-fixing abilities (which increases soil nitrogen) and its use as an animal feed greatly improved agricultural efficiency. (The nitrogen comes from the air, which is 78 % molecular nitrogen.) Alfalfa is widely grown throughout the world as forage for cattle, and is most often harvested as hay, but can also be made into silage, grazed, or fed as greenchop. Alfalfa has the highest feeding value of all common hay crops, being used less frequently as pasture. When grown on soils where it is well adapted, alfalfa is the highest yielding forage plant. Alfalfa is one of the most important legumes used in agriculture. The US is the largest alfalfa producer in the world, but considerable area is found in Argentina (primarily grazed), Australia, South Africa, and the Middle East. Known as Kuthirai Masal in Tamil, alfalfa is mostly grown in the Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu, southern India. Its primary use is as feed for dairy cattle—because of its high protein content and highly digestible fiber—and secondarily for beef cattle, horses, sheep, and goats. Humans also eat alfalfa sprouts in salads and sandwiches. Tender shoots are eaten in some places as a leaf vegetable. Human consumption of fresh mature plant parts is rare and limited primarily by alfalfa's high fiber content. Dehydrated alfalfa leaf is commercially available as a dietary supplement in several forms, such as tablets, powders and tea. Alfalfa is believed by some to be a galactagogue, a substance that induces lactation. Alfalfa leaf meal is a relatively new form of alfalfa that has become available as a by-product of the biomass to energy movement.

Fish oil is oil derived from the tissues of oily fish. It is recommended for a healthy diet because it contains the omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), precursors to eicosanoids that reduce inflammation throughout the body. Fish do not actually produce omega-3 fatty acids, but instead accumulate them from either consuming microalgae that produce these fatty acids, as is the case with fish like herring and sardines, or, as is the case with fatty predatory fish, by eating prey fish that have accumulated omega-3 fatty acids from microalgae. Such fatty predatory fish like mackerel, lake trout, flounder, albacore tuna and salmon may be high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Lactobacillus acidophilus (meaning acid-loving milk-bacterium) is a species in the genus Lactobacillus. L. acidophilus is a homo-fermentative species, fermenting sugars into lactic acid, which grows readily at rather low pH values (below pH 5.0) and has an optimum growth temperature of 30 °C (86 °F). L. acidophilus occurs naturally in the human and animal gastrointestinal tract, mouth, and vagina. Some strains of L. acidophilus may be considered to have probiotic characteristic. These strains are commercially used in many dairy products, sometimes together with S. salivarius ssp. thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus in the production of acidophilus-type yogurt. L. acidophilus is part of the normal vaginal flora. The acid produced by L. acidophilus in the vagina may help to control the growth of the fungus Candida albicans, thus helping to prevent vaginal yeast infections. The same beneficial effect has been observed in cases of oral or gastrointestinal Candidiasis infections. Certain spermicides and contraceptive creams can kill L. acidophilus in the vagina, clearing the path to possible yeast infections. Some strains of L. acidophilus have been studied extensively for health effects. Some research has indicated L. acidophilus may provide additional health benefits, including improved gastrointestinal function, a boosted immune system, and a decrease in the frequency of vaginal yeast infections. Some report L. acidophilus provides relief from indigestion and diarrhea. There are many types of fermented dairy products that use L. acidophilus. The most familiar to Americans are sweet acidophilus milk and yogurt. Sweet acidophilus milk is consumed by individuals who suffer from lactose maldigestion and intolerance, which occurs when enzymes (lactase) cannot break down lactose (milk sugar) in the intestine. Failure to digest lactose results in discomfort, cramps and diarrhea. A University of Nebraska study found that feed supplemented with L. acidophilus and fed to cattle resulted in a 61% reduction of Escherichia coli 0157:H7. Research has indicated L. acidophilus may be helpful reducing serum cholesterol levels. Antibiotics taken orally will also kill beneficial bacteria, including L. acidophilus. After a therapy that includes antibiotics, patients are occasionally instructed to take an L. acidophilus treatment in order to recolonize the gastrointestinal tract. To that effect, L. acidophilus is often sold in health stores in pill or powder form as a nutritional supplement. A part of the claims in favor of such treatment refer to attaining a better digestion thanks to a recovered normal intestinal flora, the ensuing reduction of constipation, while others indicate a link between L. acidophilus and a possible decrease in the incidence of certain diseases, including yeast infections in the upper digestive tract (especially those caused by Candida albicans), other gastrointestinal disorders, and a weakened immune system. However, despite popular belief, most researchers agree that the present knowledge on the nutritional benefits of taking L. acidophilus supplements is inconsistent and inconclusive, and that further study is needed before substantiating many of these claims.

Lactobacillus casei is a species of genus Lactobacillus found in the human intestine and mouth. As a lactic acid producer, it has been found to assist in the propagation of desirable bacteria. This particular species of lactobacillus is documented to have a wide pH and temperature range, and complements the growth of L. acidophilus, a producer of the enzyme amylase (a carbohydrate-digesting enzyme). It is known to improve digestion and reduce lactose intolerance and constipation. The most common application of L. casei is industrial, specifically for dairy production. However, a team of scientists from Simón Bolívar University in Caracas, Venezuela found that by using Lactobacillus casei bacteria in the natural fermentation of beans, the beans contained lower amounts of the compounds causing flatulence upon digestion.

Lactobacillus casei is typically the dominant species of non-starter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) present in ripening Cheddar cheese and recently, the complete genome sequence of L. casei ATCC 334 has become available. L. casei is also the dominant species in naturally fermented Sicilian green olives. A commercial beverage containing L. casei strain Shirota has been shown to inhibit the growth of H. pylori in a test tube. But when the same beverage was consumed by humans in a small trial, H. pylori colonization decreased only slightly and the trend was not statistically significant. Some L. casei are considered as probiotic and may be effective in alleviation of gastrointestinal pathogenic bacterial diseases. According to World Health Organization, those properties have to be demonstrated on each specific strain—including human clinical studies—to be valid.

Among the best-documented probiotic L. casei, L. casei DN-114001 and L. casei Shirota have been extensively studied and are widely available as functional foods (see Actimel, Yakult). In the past few years, there are many studies in the decolorization of azo dyes by lactic acid bacteria such as L. casei TISTR 1500, L. paracasei and Oenococcus oeni. With the azoreductase activity, mono-, di- azo bonds are degraded completely, and generate other aromatic compounds as intermediates.

Bifidobacterium is a genus of Gram-positive, non-motile, often branched anaerobic bacteria. Bifidobacteria are one of the major genera of bacteria that make up the gut flora, the bacteria that reside in the colon. Bifidobacteria aid in digestion, are associated with a lower incidence of allergies and also prevent some forms of tumor growth. Some bifidobacteria are being used as probiotics. Before the 1960s, Bifidobacterium species were collectively referred to as "Lactobacillus bifidus".

Enterococcus is a genus of lactic acid bacteria of the phylum Firmicutes. Members of this genus were classified as Group D Streptococcus until 1984 when genomic DNA analysis indicated that a separate genus classification would be appropriate.

Enterococci are Gram-positive cocci that often occur in pairs (diplococci) or short chains and are difficult to distinguish from Streptococci on physical characteristics alone. Two species are common commensal organisms in the intestines of humans: E. faecalis (90-95%) and E. faecium (5-10%). Enterococci are facultative anaerobic organisms, i.e., they do not require oxygen for metabolism, but can survive in oxygen-rich environments. They typically exhibit gamma hemolysis on sheep's blood agar. There are rare clusters of infections with other species: E. casseliflavus, E. raffinosus. It is used as a probiotic in animals.

Vitamin E is the collective name for a set of 8 related α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherols and the corresponding four tocotrienols, which are fat-soluble vitamins with antioxidant properties. Of these, α-tocopherol (also written as alpha-tocopherol) has been most studied as it has the highest bioavailability. It has been claimed that α-tocopherol is the most important lipid-soluble antioxidant, and that it protects cell membranes from oxidation by reacting with lipid radicals produced in the lipid peroxidation chain reaction. This would remove the free radical intermediates and prevent the oxidation reaction from continuing. The oxidized α-tocopheroxyl radicals produced in this process may be recycled back to the active reduced form through reduction by other antioxidants, such as ascorbate, retinol or ubiquinol. However, the importance of the antioxidant properties of this molecule at the concentrations present in the body are not clear and it is possible that the reason why Vitamin E is required in the diet is unrelated to its ability to act as an antioxidant. Other forms of Vitamin E have their own unique properties. For example, γ-tocopherol (also written as gamma-tocopherol) is a nucleophile that may react with electrophilic mutagens. Tocotrienols have specialized roles in protecting neurons from damage, cancer prevention and cholesterol reduction by inhibiting the activity of HMG-CoA reductase; δ-tocotrienol blocks processing of sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs). However, the roles and importance of all of the various forms of Vitamin E are presently unclear, and it has even been suggested that the most important function of Vitamin E is as a signaling molecule, and that it has no significant role in antioxidant metabolism.

Ascorbic acid is a sugar acid with antioxidant properties. Its appearance is white to light-yellow crystals or powder, and it is water-soluble. One form of ascorbic acid is commonly known as Vitamin C. The name is derived from a- (meaning no) and scorbuticus (scurvy), the disease caused by a deficiency of Vitamin C. In 1937 the Nobel Prize for chemistry was awarded to Walter Haworth for his work in determining the structure of ascorbic acid (shared with Paul Karrer, who received his award for work on vitamins), and the prize for Physiology or Medicine that year went to Albert Szent-Györgyi for his studies of the biological functions of L-ascorbic acid. At the time of its discovery in the 1920s, it was called hexuronic acid by some researchers. Ascorbic acid is found in plants, animals, and single-cell organisms. All living animals either make it, eat it, or die from scurvy due to lack of it. Reptiles and older orders of birds make ascorbic acid in their kidneys. Recent orders of birds and most mammals make ascorbic acid in their livers where the enzyme L-gulonolactone oxidase is required to convert glucose to ascorbic acid. Humans, guinea pigs, and some other primates are not able to make L-gulonolactone oxidase because of a genetic defect and are therefore unable to make ascorbic acid in their livers. This genetic mutation occurred about 63 million years ago. This would have had lethal consequences for the mutated primate were it not for the fact that it occurred to an arboreal animal living in a tropical environment where plenty of foodstuffs containing ascorbic acid were available throughout the year. Although ascorbic acid is a vital food nutrient for humans and is therefore termed a vitamin, it is a natural liver metabolite in most other animals.

Biotin, also known as Vitamin H or B7, is a water-soluble B-complex vitamin, which is composed of an ureido (tetrahydroimidizalone) ring fused with a tetrahydrothiophene ring. A valeric acid substituent is attached to one of the carbon atoms of the tetrahydrothiophene ring. Biotin is a cofactor in the metabolism of fatty acids and leucine, and it plays a role in gluconeogenesis. Biotin is necessary for cell growth, the production of fatty acids, and the metabolism of fats and amino acids. It plays a role in the Citric acid cycle, which is the process by which biochemical energy is generated during aerobic respiration. Biotin not only assists in various metabolic reactions, but also helps to transfer carbon dioxide. Biotin is also helpful in maintaining a steady blood sugar level. Biotin is often recommended for strengthening hair and nails. Consequently, it is found in many cosmetic and health products for the hair and skin. Deficiency is extremely rare, as intestinal bacteria generally produce an excess of the body's daily requirement. For that reason, statutory agencies in many countries (e.g., the Australian Department of Health and Aging) do not prescribe a recommended daily intake. Biotin is widely distributed in a variety of foods, but most often at low concentrations. Estimates are that the typical U.S. diet provides roughly 40 ug/day. There are only a couple of foods that contain biotin in large amounts, including royal jelly and brewer's yeast. The best natural sources of biotin in human nutrition are liver, legume, soybeans, Swiss chard, tomatoes, romaine lettuce, and carrots. This includes almonds, eggs, onions, cabbage, cucumber, cauliflower, goat's milk, cow's milk, raspberries, strawberries, halibut, oats, and walnuts. The most important natural sources in feeding nonruminant animals are oilseed meals, alfalfa, and dried yeasts. It is important to note that the biotin content of food varies and can be influenced by factors such as plant variety, season, and yield (endosperm-to-pericarp ratio).

Niacin, also known as Vitamin B3 or nicotinic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin that prevents the deficiency disease pellagra. It is an organic compound with the molecular formula C6H5NO2. It is a derivative of pyridine, with a carboxyl group (COOH) at the 3-position. Other forms of Vitamin B3 include the corresponding amide, nicotinamide ("niacinamide"), where the carboxyl group has been replaced by a carboxamide group (CONH2), as well as more complex amides and a variety of esters. The terms niacin, nicotinamide, and Vitamin B3 are often used interchangeably to refer to any one of this family of molecules, since they have a common biochemical activity. Niacin is converted to nicotinamide and then to NAD and NADP in vivo. Although the two are identical in their vitamin activity, nicotinamide does not have the same pharmacological effects as niacin, which occur as side effects of niacin's conversion. Thus nicotinamide does not reduce cholesterol or cause flushing although nicotinamide may be toxic to the liver at doses exceeding 3 g/day for adults. Niacin is a precursor to NADH, NAD, NAD+, NADP and NADPH, which play essential metabolic roles in living cells. Niacin is involved in both DNA repair, and the production of steroid hormones in the adrenal gland. Niacin is one of five vitamins associated with a pandemic deficiency disease: these are niacin (pellagra), Vitamin C (scurvy), thiamin (beriberi), Vitamin D (rickets), and Vitamin A deficiency, a syndrome which has no common name but is one of the most common symptomatic deficiencies worldwide. Depending on the definition used, niacin is one of between 40 to 80 essential human nutrients. Currently niacin deficiency is rarely seen in developed countries and is usually apparent in conditions of poverty and malnutrition and chronic alcoholism. Alcoholic patients typically experience increased intestinal permeability leading to negative health outcomes. Studies have indicated that in patients with alcoholic pellagra, niacin deficiency may be an important factor influencing both the onset and severity of this condition. Severe deficiency of niacin in the diet causes the disease pellagra. Pellagra is characterized by diarrhea, dermatitis and dementia as well as "necklace" lesions on the lower neck, hyperpigmentation, thickening of the skin, inflammation of the mouth and tongue, digestive disturbances, amnesia, delirium, and eventually death if left untreated. Common psychiatric symptoms include irritability, poor concentration, anxiety, fatigue, restlessness, apathy, and depression. Mild niacin deficiency has been shown to slow metabolism, causing decreased tolerance to the cold. Dietary niacin deficiency tends to occur in areas where people eat maize ("corn") as a staple food. Maize is the only grain low in niacin and nixtamalization is needed to increase the bioavailability of niacin during meal/flour production. Nixtamalization refers to the process of alkaline cooking maize with lime. This is the primary processing step during the manufacture of maize products including chips, tortillas, and taco shells. The basic pre-Columbian technique involves cooking whole maize in water for 12–16 hours in large tanks. The steeped maize is referred to as nixtamal and the cooked liquid is nejayote. This process functions to soften the pericarp of the maize and allows the endosperm to absorb water, enabling its milling. The nixtamal is washed and then stone-ground to produce masa, which is used to produce a variety of products with improved bioavailability of niacin. The recommended daily allowance of niacin is 2–12 mg/day for children, 14 mg/day for women, 16 mg/day for men, and 18 mg/day for pregnant or breast-feeding women. The upper limit for adult men and women is 35 mg/day, which is based on flushing as the critical adverse effect. Hartnup’s disease is an inherited nutritional disorder involving an in-born error of metabolism resulting in niacin deficiency. This condition was first identified in the 1950’s by the Hartnup family in London. It is due to a deficit in the intestines and kidneys, making it difficult for the body to break down and absorb dietary tryptophan. The result is a similar condition to pellagra including symptoms of red, scaly rash and sensitivity to sunlight. Oral niacin is given as a treatment in this condition in doses ranging from 40-200 mg with a good prognosis if identified and treated early. Niacin synthesis is also deficient in carcinoid syndrome because of metabolic diversion of its precursor, tryptophan, to form serotonin.

Niacin status is generally tested through urinary biomarkers, which are believed to be more reliable than plasma levels.

Pantothenic acid, also called Vitamin B5 (a B vitamin), is a water-soluble vitamin required to sustain life (essential nutrient). Pantothenic acid is needed to form coenzyme-A (CoA), and is critical in the metabolism and synthesis of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. In chemical structure, it is the amide between D-pantoate and beta-alanine. Its name is derived from the Greek pantothen (παντόθεν) meaning "from everywhere" and small quantities of pantothenic acid are found in nearly every food, with high amounts in whole-grain cereals, legumes, eggs, meat, and royal jelly. It is commonly found as its alcohol analog, the provitamin panthenol, and as calcium pantothenate. Small quantities of pantothenic acid are found in most foods. The major food source of pantothenic acid is in meats, although the concentration found in food animals' muscles is only about half that in humans' muscles. Whole grains are another good source of the vitamin, but milling often removes much of the pantothenic acid, as it is found in the outer layers of whole grains. Vegetables, such as broccoli and avocados, also have an abundance of the acid. In animal feeds, the most important sources of the vitamin are rice, wheat brans, alfalfa, peanut meal, molasses, yeasts, and condensed fish solutions. The most significant sources of pantothenic acid in nature are coldwater fish ovaries and royal jelly.

A recent study also suggests that gut bacteria in humans can generate pantothenic acid, but this has not yet been proven. The derivative of pantothenic acid, pantothenol, is a more stable form of the vitamin and is often used as a source of the vitamin in multivitamin supplements. Another common supplemental form of the vitamin is calcium pantothenate. Calcium pantothenate is often used in dietary supplements because as a salt, it is more stable than pantothenic acid in the digestive tract allowing for better absorption. Possible benefits of supplementation: Doses of 2g/day of calcium pantothenate may reduce the duration of morning stiffness, degree of disability, and pain severity in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Although the results are inconsistent, supplementation may improve oxygen utilization efficiency and reduce lactic acid accumulation in athletes.

Vitamin A, a bi-polar molecule formed with bi-polar covalent bonds between carbon and hydrogen, is linked to a family of similarly shaped molecules, the retinoids, which complete the remainder of the vitamin sequence. Its important part is the retinyl group, which can be found in several forms. In foods of animal origin, the major form of Vitamin A is an ester, primarily retinyl palmitate, which is converted to an alcohol (retinol) in the small intestine. Vitamin A can also exist as an aldehyde (retinal), or as an acid (retinoic acid). Precursors to the vitamin (provitamins) are present in foods of plant origin as some of the members of the carotenoid family of compounds. All forms of Vitamin A have a beta-ionone ring to which an isoprenoid chain is attached. This structure is essential for vitamin activity. The orange pigment of carrots - beta-carotene - can be represented as two connected retinyl groups, which are used in the body to contribute to Vitamin A levels. The retinyl group, when attached to a specific protein, is the only primary light absorber in visual perception, and the compound name is related to the retina of the eye. Vitamin A can be found in various forms: Retinol, the form of Vitamin A absorbed when eating animal food sources, is a yellow, fat-soluble, vitamin with importance in vision and bone growth. Since the alcohol form is unstable, the vitamin is usually produced and administered in a form of retinyl acetate or palmitate. Other retinoids, a class of chemical compounds that are related chemically to Vitamin A, are used in medicine. The discovery of Vitamin A may have stemmed from research dating back to 1906, indicating that factors other than carbohydrates, proteins, and fats were necessary to keep cattle healthy. By 1917 one of these substances was independently discovered by Elmer McCollum at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Lafayette Mendel and Thomas Burr Osborne at Yale University. Since "water-soluble factor B" (Vitamin B) had recently been discovered, the researchers chose the name "fat-soluble factor A" (Vitamin A). Vitamin A was first synthesized in 1947 by two Dutch chemists, David Adriaan van Dorp and Jozef Ferdinand Arens. As some carotenoids can be converted into Vitamin A, attempts have been made to determine how much of them in the diet is equivalent to a particular amount of retinol, so that comparisons can be made of the benefit of different foods. Unfortunately the situation is confusing because the accepted equivalences have changed. For many years, a system of equivalencies was used in which an international unit (IU) was equal to 0.3 µg of retinol, 0.6 µg of ß-carotene, or 1.2 µg of other provitamin-A carotenoids. Later, a unit called retinol equivalent (RE) was introduced. 1 RE corresponded to 1 µg retinol, 2 µg ß-carotene dissolved in oil (as in supplement pills), 6 µg ß-carotene in normal food (because it is not absorbed as well as from supplements), and 12 µg of either a-carotene or ß-cryptoxanthin in food. However, new research showed that the absorption of provitamin-A carotenoids was only half as much as previously thought, so in 2001 the US Institute of Medicine recommended a new unit, the retinol activity equivalent (RAE). 1 µg RAE corresponds to 1 µg retinol, 2 µg of ß-carotene in oil, 12 µg of "dietary" beta-carotene, or 24 µg of other dietary provitamin-A carotenoids. Because the production of retinol from provitamins by the human body is regulated by the amount of retinol available to the body, the conversions apply strictly only for Vitamin A deficient humans. The absorption of provitamins also depends greatly on the amount of lipids ingested with the provitamin; lipids increase the uptake of the provitamin. The conclusion that can be drawn from the newer research is that fruits and vegetables are not as useful for obtaining Vitamin A as was thought—in other words, the IU's that they were reported to contain were worth much less than the same number of IU's of fat-dissolved supplements. This is important for vegetarians. (Night blindness is prevalent in countries where little meat or Vitamin A-fortified foods are available.) A sample vegan diet for one day that provides sufficient Vitamin A has been published by the Food and Nutrition Board. On the other hand, reference values for retinol or its equivalents, provided by the National Academy of Sciences, have decreased. The RDA (for men) of 1968 was 5000 IU (1500 µg retinol). In 1974 the RDA was set to 1000 RE (1000 µg retinol), whereas now the Dietary Reference Intake is 900 RAE (900 µg or 3000 IU retinol). This is equivalent to 1800 µg of ß-carotene supplement (3000 IU) or 10800 µg of ß-carotene in food (18000 IU).

Riboflavin (E101), also known as Vitamin B2, is an easily absorbed micronutrient with a key role in maintaining health in humans and animals. It is the central component of the cofactors FAD and FMN, and is therefore required by all flavoproteins. As such, Vitamin B2 is required for a wide variety of cellular processes. Like the other B vitamins, it plays a key role in energy metabolism, and is required for the metabolism of fats, ketone bodies, carbohydrates, and proteins. Milk, cheese, leafy green vegetables, liver, kidneys, legumes such as mature soybeans, yeast, mushrooms and almonds are good sources of Vitamin B2, but exposure to light destroys riboflavin. The name "riboflavin" comes from "ribose" and "flavin". Riboflavin is yellow or yellow-orange in color and in addition to being used as a food coloring, it is also used to fortify some foods. It is used in baby foods, breakfast cereals, pastas, sauces, processed cheese, fruit drinks, vitamin-enriched milk products, and some energy drinks. Regarding occurrence and sources of Vitamin B2, Yeast extract is considered to be exceptionally rich in Vitamin B2, and liver and kidney are also rich sources. Wheat bran, eggs, meat, milk, and cheese are important sources in diets containing these foods. Cereal grains contain relatively low concentrations of flavins, but are important sources in those parts of the world where cereals constitute the staple diet. The milling of cereals results in considerable loss (up to 60%) of Vitamin B2, so white flour is enriched by addition of the vitamin. The enrichment of bread and ready-to-eat breakfast cereals contributes significantly to the dietary supply of Vitamin B2. Polished rice is not usually enriched, because the vitamin’s yellow color would make the rice visually unacceptable to the major rice-consumption populations. However, most of the flavins content of the whole brown rice is retained if the rice is steamed prior to milling. This process drives the flavins in the germ and aleurone layers into the endosperm. Free riboflavin is naturally present in foods along with protein-bound FMN and FAD. Bovine milk contains mainly free riboflavin, with a minor contribution from FMN and FAD. In whole milk, 14% of the flavins are bound noncovalently to specific proteins. Egg white and egg yolk contain specialized riboflavin-binding proteins, which are required for storage of free riboflavin in the egg for use by the developing embryo. It is difficult to incorporate riboflavin into many liquid products because it has poor solubility in water, hence the requirement for a more expensive but more soluble form of riboflavin. Riboflavin is generally stable during the heat processing and normal cooking of foods if light is excluded. The alkaline conditions in which riboflavin is unstable are rarely encountered in foodstuffs.

Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin with a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system, and for the formation of blood. It is one of the eight B vitamins. It is normally involved in the metabolism of every cell of the body, especially affecting DNA synthesis and regulation, but also fatty acid synthesis and energy production. Vitamin B12 is the name for a class of chemically related compounds, all of which have vitamin activity. It is structurally the most complicated vitamin and it contains the biochemically rare element cobalt. Biosynthesis of the basic structure of the vitamin can only be accomplished by bacteria, but conversion between different forms of the vitamin can be accomplished in the human body. A common synthetic form of the vitamin, cyanocobalamin, does not occur in nature, but is used in many pharmaceuticals, supplements and as food additives, due to its stability and lower cost. In the body it is converted to the physiological forms, methylcobalamin and adenosylcobalamin, leaving behind the cyanide, albeit in minimal concentration. More recently, hydroxocobalamin, methylcobalamin and, adenosylcobalamin can also be found in more expensive pharmacological products and food supplements. The utility of these is presently debated. Historically, Vitamin B12 was discovered from its relationship to the disease pernicious anemia, which is an autoimmune disease that destroys parietal cells in the stomach that secrete intrinsic factor. Intrinsic factor is crucial for the normal absorption of B12, therefore, a lack of intrinsic factor, as seen in pernicious anemia, causes a Vitamin B12 deficiency. Many other subtler kinds of Vitamin B12 deficiency, and their biochemical effects, have since been elucidated.

Thiamine, or thiamin, sometimes called aneurin, is a water-soluble vitamin of the B complex (Vitamin B1), whose phosphate derivatives are involved in many cellular processes. The best-characterized form is thiamine diphosphate (ThDP), a coenzyme in the catabolism of sugars and amino acids. In yeast, ThDP is also required in the first step of alcoholic fermentation. Thiamine is synthesized in bacteria, fungi and plants. Animals must cover all their needs from their food and insufficient intake results in a disease called beriberi affecting the peripheral nervous system (polyneuritis) and/or the cardiovascular system, with fatal outcome if not cured by thiamine administration. In less severe deficiency, nonspecific signs include malaise, weight loss, irritability and confusion. Today, there is still a lot of work devoted to elucidating the exact mechanisms by which thiamine deficiency leads to the specific symptoms observed. Finally, new thiamine phosphate derivatives have recently been discovered, emphasizing the complexity of thiamine metabolism and the need for more research in the field. Thiamine is found in a wide variety of foods at low concentrations. Yeast and pork are the most highly concentrated sources of thiamine. Cereal grains, however, are generally the most important dietary sources of thiamine, by virtue of their ubiquity. Of these, whole grains contain more thiamine than refined grains, as thiamine is found mostly in the outer layers of the grain and in the germ (which are removed during the refining process). For example, 100 g of whole wheat flour contains 0.55 mg of thiamine, while 100 g of white flour only contains 0.06 mg of thiamine. In the US, processed flour must be enriched with thiamine mononitrate (along with niacin, ferrous iron, riboflavin and folic acid) to replace that lost in processing. Some other foods rich in thiamine are oatmeal, flax and Sunflower seeds, brown rice, whole grain rye, asparagus, kale, cauliflower, potatoes, oranges, liver (beef, pork and chicken) and eggs.

Pyridoxine assists in the balancing of sodium and potassium as well as promoting red blood cell production. It is linked to cardiovascular health by decreasing the formation of homocysteine. It has been suggested that Pyridoxine might help children with learning difficulties, and may also prevent dandruff, eczema, and psoriasis. In addition, pyridoxine can help balance hormonal changes in women and aid in the immune system. Lack of pyridoxine may cause anemia, nerve damage, seizures, skin problems, and sores in the mouth. It is required for the production of the monoamine neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine, as it is the precursor to pyridoxal phosphate: cofactor for the enzyme aromatic amino acid decarboxylase. This enzyme is responsible for converting the precursors 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) into serotonin and levodopa (L-DOPA) into dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline. As such it has been implicated in the treatment of depression and anxiety. A very good source of pyridoxine is dragon fruit from South East Asia. Pyridoxine is not normally found in plants and plants are not the principal source of this vitamin. This vitamin is made by certain bacteria. Some vegetarians may get adequate pyridoxine simply from eating plants that have traces of soil (like potato skins). Most people get their supply of this vitamin from either milk or meat products.

Citric acid is a weak organic acid, is a natural preservative and is also used to add an acidic, or sour, taste to foods and soft drinks. In biochemistry, it is important as an intermediate in the citric acid cycle and therefore occurs in the metabolism of virtually all living things. It can also be used as an environmentally benign cleaning agent and acts as an antioxidant and a lubricant. Citric acid exists in greater than trace amounts in a variety of fruits and vegetables, most notably citrus fruits. Lemons and limes have particularly high concentrations of the acid; it can constitute as much as 8% of the dry weight of these fruits (1.44 and 1.38 grams per ounce of the juices, respectively). The concentrations of citric acid in citrus fruits range from .005 mol/L for oranges and grapefruits to .030 mol/L in lemons and limes. These values vary depending on the circumstances in which the fruit was grown. As a food additive, citric acid is used as a flavoring and preservative in food and beverages, especially soft drinks. It is denoted by E number E330. Citrate salts of various metals are used to deliver those minerals in a biologically available form in many dietary supplements. The buffering properties of citrates are used to control pH in household cleaners and pharmaceuticals. In the United States the purity requirements for citric acid as a food additive are defined by the Food Chemical Codex (FCC), which is published by the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP).

Vitamin D is a group of fat-soluble prohormones, the two major forms of which are Vitamin D2 (or ergocalciferol) and Vitamin D3 (or cholecalciferol). The term Vitamin D also refers to metabolites and other analogues of these substances. Vitamin D3 is produced in skin exposed to sunlight, specifically ultraviolet B radiation. Vitamin D plays an important role in the maintenance of organ systems. Vitamin D regulates the calcium and phosphorus levels in the blood by promoting their absorption from food in the intestines, and by promoting reabsorption of calcium in the kidneys, which enables normal mineralization of bone and prevents hypocalcemic tetany. It is also needed for bone growth and bone remodeling by osteoblasts and osteoclasts. In the absence of Vitamin K or with drugs (particularly blood thinners) that interfere with Vitamin K metabolism, Vitamin D can promote soft tissue calcification. It inhibits parathyroid hormone secretion from the parathyroid gland. Vitamin D affects the immune system by promoting phagocytosis, anti-tumor activity, and immunomodulatory functions.

Vitamin D deficiency can result from inadequate intake coupled with inadequate sunlight exposure; disorders that limit its absorption; conditions that impair conversion of Vitamin D into active metabolites, such as liver or kidney disorders; or, rarely, by a number of hereditary disorders. Deficiency results in impaired bone mineralization and leads to bone softening diseases; rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults, and possibly contributes to osteoporosis. However, sunlight exposure, to avoid deficiency, carries other risks, including skin cancer; this risk is avoided with dietary absorption, either through diet or as a dietary supplement. Vitamin D is naturally produced by the human body when exposed to direct sunlight. Season, geographic latitude, time of day, cloud cover, smog, and sunscreen affect UV ray exposure and Vitamin D synthesis in the skin, and it is important for individuals with limited sun exposure to include good sources of Vitamin D in their diet. Extra Vitamin D is also recommended for older adults and people with dark skin. Individuals with a high-risk of deficiency should consume 25 µg (1000 IU) of Vitamin D daily to maintain adequate blood concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D. As civilization and the Industrial Revolution enabled humans to work indoors and wear more clothes when in the sun, these cultural changes reduced natural production of Vitamin D and caused deficiency diseases. In many countries, foods such as milk, yogurt, margarine, oil spreads, breakfast cereal, pastries, and bread are fortified with Vitamin D2 and/or Vitamin D3, to minimize the risk of Vitamin D deficiency. In the United States and Canada, for example, fortified milk typically provides 100 IU per glass, or one quarter of the estimated adequate intake for adults over the age of 50. Supplementation of 100 IU (2.5 microgram) Vitamin D3 raises blood calcidiol levels by 2.5 nmol/litre (1 ng/ml). Fatty fish, such as salmon, are natural sources of Vitamin D. Natural sources of Vitamin D include:

• Fish liver oils, such as cod liver oil, 1 Tbsp. (15 mL) provides 1,360 IU (one IU equals 25 ng)
• Fatty fish species, such as:
• Herring, 85 g (3 ounces (oz)) provides 1383 IU
• Catfish, 85 g (3 oz) provides 425 IU
• Salmon, cooked, 100 g (3.5 oz) provides 360 IU
• Mackerel, cooked, 100 g (3.5 oz), 345 IU
• Sardines, canned in oil, drained, 50 g (1.75 oz), 250 IU
• Tuna, canned in oil, 85 g (3 oz), 200 IU
• Eel, cooked, 100 g (3.5 oz), 200 IU
• One whole egg, provides 20 IU
• Beef liver, cooked, 100 g (3.5 oz), provides 15 IU
• UV-irradiated mushrooms (Vitamin D2)

The practical reality is that on average, the U.S. diet provides 100 IU/day. One problem is that much of the fortified milk is not fortified to the required amount. Adequate Intake is defined as 200 IU/day for ages infant to 50, 400/day for 51-70, and 600/day for >70. The 100% Daily Value used for product labels is 400 IU. The safe upper limit is set at 2000 IU. The Institute Of Medicine is revisiting Vitamin D and calcium recommendations. The report is expected Spring 2010.

Folic acid (also known as Vitamin B9 or Folacin) and Folate (the naturally occurring form) are forms of the water-soluble Vitamin B9. Vitamin B9 (Folic acid and Folate inclusive) is essential to numerous bodily functions ranging from nucleotide synthesis to the remethylation of homocysteine. It is especially important during periods of rapid cell division and growth. Both children and adults require folic acid to produce healthy red blood cells and prevent anemia. Folate and Folic acid derive their names from the Latin word folium (leaf). Leafy vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, lettuces, dried/fresh beans and peas, fortified cereal products, sunflower seeds and certain other fruits and vegetables are rich sources of folate. Liver and liver products also contain high amounts of folate, as does baker's yeast. Some breakfast cereals (ready-to-eat and others) are fortified with 25% to 100% of the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for folic acid. A table of selected food sources of folate and folic acid can be found at the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Folic acid is added to grain products in many countries, and in these countries fortified products make up a significant source of folate. Because of the difference in bioavailability between supplemented folic acid and the different forms of folate found in food, the dietary folate equivalent (DFE) system was established. 1 DFE is defined as 1 µg of dietary folate, or 0.6 µg of folic acid supplement. This is reduced to 0.5 µg of folic acid if the supplement is taken on an empty stomach.

Iron(II) sulfate (Iron(II) sulphate) or ferrous sulfate (ferrous sulphate) is the chemical compound with the formula (FeSO4), known since ancient times as copperas. It is most commonly encountered as the blue-green heptahydrate. Together with other iron compounds, ferrous sulfate is used to fortify foods and to treat iron-deficiency anemia. Copperas was given indiscriminately, by untrained persons, to slaves in the 18th and 19th centuries for various ailments. Constipation is a frequent and uncomfortable side effect associated with the administration of oral iron supplements. Stool softeners often are prescribed to prevent constipation.

Zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) is a colorless crystalline, water-soluble chemical compound. The hydrated form, ZnSO4·7H2O, the mineral goslarite, was historically known as "white vitriol" and can be prepared by reacting zinc with aqueous sulfuric acid. It may also be prepared by adding solid zinc to a copper(II) sulfate solution. It is used to supply zinc in animal feeds, fertilizers, and agricultural sprays. ZnSO4·7H2O is used in making lithopone, in coagulation baths for rayon, in electrolytes for zinc plating, as a mordant in dyeing, as a preservative for skins and leather and in medicine as an astringent and emetic. Another natural form of this heptahydrate is known as mineral zincmelanterite (Zn,Cu,Fe)SO4·7H2O (structurally different from goslarite). Lower hydrates of zinc sulfate are rarely found in nature as minerals: bianchite (Zn,Fe)SO4·6H2O, boyleite (Zn,Mg)SO4·4H2O and gunningite (Zn,Mn)SO4·H2O.

Zinc proteinate is the final product resulting from the chelation of zinc with amino acids and/or partially hydrolyzed proteins. It is used as a nutritional animal feed supplement formulated to prevent and/or correct zinc deficiency in animals. Zinc proteinate can be used in place of zinc sulfate and zinc methionine.

Good sources of dietary iron include red meat, fish, poultry, lentils, beans, leaf vegetables, tofu, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, fortified bread, and fortified breakfast cereals. Iron in low amounts is found in molasses, teff and farina. Iron in meat (haem iron) is more easily absorbed than iron in vegetables, but haem/hemoglobin from red meat has effects that may increase the likelihood of colorectal cancer. Iron provided by dietary supplements is often found as iron (II) fumarate, although iron sulfate is cheaper and is absorbed equally well. Elemental iron, despite being absorbed to a much smaller extent (stomach acid is sufficient to convert some of it to ferrous iron), is often added to foods such as breakfast cereals or "enriched" wheat flour (where it is listed as "reduced iron" in the list of ingredients). Iron is most available to the body when chelated to amino acids - iron in this form is ten to fifteen times more bioavailable than any other, and is also available for use as a common iron supplement. Often the amino acid chosen for this purpose is the cheapest and most common amino acid, glycine, leading to "iron glycinate" supplements. The RDA for iron varies considerably based on age, gender, and source of dietary iron (haem-based iron has higher bioavailability). Infants may require iron supplements if they are breast-fed. Blood donors and pregnant women are at special risk of low iron levels and are often advised to supplement their iron intake.

Zinc oxide is an inorganic compound with the formula ZnO. It usually appears as a white powder, nearly insoluble in water. The powder is widely used as an additive into numerous materials and products including plastics, ceramics, glass, cement, rubber (e.g. car tires), lubricants, paints, ointments, adhesives, sealants, pigments, foods (source of Zn nutrient), batteries, ferrites, fire retardants, etc. ZnO is present in the Earth crust as a mineral zincite; however, most ZnO used commercially is produced synthetically. In materials science, ZnO is often called a II-VI semiconductor because zinc and oxygen belong to the 2nd and 6th groups of the periodic table, respectively. This semiconductor has several favorable properties: good transparency, high electron mobility, wide bandgap, strong room-temperature luminescence, etc. Those properties are already used in emerging applications for transparent electrodes in liquid crystal displays and in energy-saving or heat-protecting windows, and electronic applications of ZnO as thin-film transistor and light-emitting diode are forthcoming as of 2009. As a food additive, Zinc oxide is on FDA's generally recognized as safe, or GRAS, substances.

Copper(II) sulfate is the chemical compound with the formula CuSO4. This salt exists as a series of compounds that differ in their degree of hydration. The anhydrous form is a pale green or gray-white powder, whereas the pentahydrate, the most commonly encountered salt, is bright blue. The anhydrous form occurs as a rare mineral known as chalcocyanite. The hydrated copper sulfate occurs in nature as chalcanthite (pentahydrate), and two more rare ones: bonattite (trihydrate) and boothite (heptahydrate). Archaic names for copper(II) sulfate are "blue vitriol" and "bluestone".

Manganese sulfate is the inorganic compound with the formula MnSO4. This colorless deliquescent solid is a commercially significant manganese(II) salt. Approximately 260M kg/y were produced worldwide in 2005. It is the precursor to manganese metal and many chemical compounds. Mn-deficient soil is remediated with this salt. Like many metal sulfates, manganese sulfate forms a variety of hydrates: monohydrate, tetrahydrate, pentahydrate, and heptahydrate. The monohydrate is most common. All of these salts are faintly pink. The pale color of Mn(II) salts is characteristic of high-spin complexes with the d5 configuration.

Manganese is an essential trace nutrient in all forms of life. The classes of enzymes that have manganese cofactors are very broad and include such classes as oxidoreductases, transferases, hydrolases, lyases, isomerases, ligases, lectins, and integrins. The reverse transcriptases of many retroviruses (though not lentiviruses such as HIV) contain manganese. The best known manganese-containing polypeptides may be arginase, the diphtheria toxin, and Mn-containing superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD). Mn-SOD is the type of SOD present in eukaryotic mitochondria, and also in most bacteria (this fact is in keeping with the bacterial-origin theory of mitochondria). The Mn-SOD enzyme is probably one of the most ancient, for nearly all organisms living in the presence of oxygen use it to deal with the toxic effects of superoxide, formed from the 1-electron reduction of dioxygen. Exceptions include a few kinds of bacteria such as Lactobacillus plantarum and related lactobacilli, which use a different non-enzymatic mechanism, involving manganese (Mn2+) ions complexed with polyphosphate directly for this task, indicating how this function possibly evolved in aerobic life. The human body contains about 10 mg of manganese, which is stored mainly in the liver and kidneys. In the human brain the manganese is bound to manganese metalloproteins most notable glutamine synthetase in astrocytes. Manganese is also important in photosynthetic oxygen evolution in chloroplasts in plants. The oxygen evolving complex (OEC) is a part of Photosystem II contained in the thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts; it is responsible for the terminal photooxidation of water during the light reactions of photosynthesis and has a metalloenzyme core containing four atoms of manganese. For this reason, most broad-spectrum plant fertilizers contain manganese.

Copper is essential in all plants and animals. The human body normally contains copper at a level of about 1.4 to 2.1 mg for each kg of body weight. Copper is distributed widely in the body and occurs in liver, muscle and bone. Copper is transported in the bloodstream on a plasma protein called ceruloplasmin. When copper is first absorbed in the gut it is transported to the liver bound to albumin. Copper metabolism and excretion is controlled delivery of copper to the liver by ceruloplasmin, where it is excreted in bile. Copper is found in a variety of enzymes, including the copper centers of cytochrome c oxidase and the enzyme superoxide dismutase (containing copper and zinc). In addition to its enzymatic roles, copper is used for biological electron transport. The blue copper proteins that participate in electron transport include azurin and plastocyanin. The name "blue copper" comes from their intense blue color arising from a ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) absorption band around 600 nm. Most molluscs and some arthropods such as the horseshoe crab use the copper-containing pigment hemocyanin rather than iron-containing hemoglobin for oxygen transport, so their blood is blue when oxygenated rather than red. It is believed that zinc and copper compete for absorption in the digestive tract so that a diet that is excessive in one of these minerals may result in a deficiency in the other. The RDA for copper in normal healthy adults is 0.9 mg/day. On the other hand, professional research on the subject recommends 3.0 mg/day. Because of its role in facilitating iron uptake, copper deficiency can often produce anemia-like symptoms. In humans, the symptoms of Wilson's disease are caused by an accumulation of copper in body tissues. Chronic copper depletion leads to abnormalities in metabolism of fats, high triglycerides, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fatty liver disease and poor melanin and dopamine synthesis causing depression and sunburn. Food rich in copper should be eaten away from any milk or egg proteins as they block absorption.

Manganese oxide is a generic term used to describe a variety of manganese oxides and hydroxides. It may refer to:

• Manganese(II) oxide, MnO
• Manganese(II,III) oxide, Mn3O4
• Manganese(II,IV) oxide, Mn5O8
• Manganese(III) oxide, Mn2O3
• Manganese dioxide, (manganese(IV) oxide), MnO2
• Manganese trioxide, (manganese(VI) oxide), MnO3

Manganese(VII) oxide, Mn2O7 Manganese dioxide is the inorganic compound with the formula MnO2. This blackish or brown solid occurs naturally as the mineral pyrolusite, which is the main ore of manganese. It is also present in manganese nodules. The principal use for MnO2 is for dry-cell batteries, such as the alkaline battery and the zinc-carbon battery. In 1976 this application accounted for 500,000 tonnes of pyrolusite. MnO2 is also used for production of MnO4–. It is used extensively as an oxidizing agent in organic synthesis, for example, for the oxidation of allylic alcohols.

Selenium (pronounced /sə-li-niəm/) is a chemical element with the atomic number 34, represented by the chemical symbol Se, an atomic mass of 78.96. It is a nonmetal, chemically related to sulfur and tellurium, and rarely occurs in its elemental state in nature. Isolated selenium occurs in several different forms, the most stable of which is a dense purplish-gray semi-metal (semiconductor) form that is structurally a trigonal polymer chain. It conducts electricity better in the light than in the dark, and is used in photocells. Selenium also exists in many non-conductive forms: a black glass-like allotrope, as well as several red crystalline forms built of eight-membered ring molecules, like its lighter chemical cousin sulfur.

Selenium is found in economic quantities in sulfide ores such as pyrite, partially replacing the sulfur in the ore matrix. Minerals that are selenide or selenate compounds are also known, but all are rare. The chief commercial present uses for selenium are in glassmaking and in chemicals and pigments. Electronic uses for selenium, once important, have been supplanted by silicon semiconductor devices. Selenium salts are toxic in large amounts, but trace amounts of the element are necessary for cellular function in most, if not all, animals, forming the active center of the enzymes glutathione peroxidase and thioredoxin reductase (which indirectly reduce certain oxidized molecules in animals and some plants) and three known deiodinase enzymes (which convert one thyroid hormone to another). Selenium requirements in plants differ by species, with some plants apparently requiring none. Although it is toxic in large doses, selenium is an essential micronutrient for animals. In plants, it occurs as a bystander mineral, sometimes in toxic proportions in forage (some plants may accumulate selenium as a defense against being eaten by animals, but other plants such as locoweed require selenium, and their growth indicates the presence of selenium in soil). It is a component of the unusual amino acids selenocysteine and selenomethionine. In humans, selenium is a trace element nutrient which functions as cofactor for reduction of antioxidant enzymes such as glutathione peroxidases and certain forms of thioredoxin reductase found in animals and some plants (this enzyme occurs in all living organisms, but not all forms of it in plants require selenium). Glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) catalyzes certain reactions that remove reactive oxygen species such as peroxide:

2 GSH+H2O2---------GSH-Px → GSSG + 2 H2O.

Selenium also plays a role in the functioning of the thyroid gland by participating as a cofactor for the three known thyroid hormone deiodinases. Dietary selenium comes from nuts, cereals, meat, fish, and eggs. Brazil nuts are the richest ordinary dietary source (though this is soil-dependent, since the Brazil nut does not require high levels of the element for its own needs). High levels are found in kidney, tuna, crab and lobster, in that order.

Calcium iodate (also called lautarite) is a compound of calcium and iodate anion. It is used as a dough conditioner. Calcium iodate is an oxidant added to lotions and ointments as an antiseptic and deodorant.