A little bit about vitamins

Vitamins in fruits and vegetables are distributed unevenly. In the skin of fresh cucumbers and citrus fruits, they are almost twice as large as in the pulp.

But the pulp of apples, quinces, pears and potatoes contains vitamins much more than their peel. In tomatoes and sweet pepper, the saturation with ascorbic acid and provitamin A decreases from the base to their apex.

Sometimes the cause of insomnia, increased irritability and a number of other painful conditions is the excessive consumption of vitamin preparations. With an excess of vitamin D, calcium is excreted from the bone tissue and begins to soften, as, for example, in hypovitaminosis D. The over-saturation of the body with vitamin A can lead to poisoning.

Excess of one of the B vitamins, namely folic acid, adversely affects the function of the adrenal glands. Therefore, any vitamin preparations for all people, and especially for the elderly, should be eaten with care.

Vitamins have antagonists, at least in some cases. For example, unwanted oxidation of vitamin C occurs not only when the products containing ascorbic acid are heated or stored incorrectly, but also under the action of an enzyme called ascorbic oxidase. Antivitamin C - ascorbotoxidase contains many vegetables, especially a lot of it in cucumbers, pumpkin, zucchini, cauliflower. The activity of antivitamin C increases after crushing vegetables. Therefore, it is better to prepare salads shortly before they are served to the table.

Muscles of some species of fish in raw form, rice, blueberries, cherries, spinach, raw potatoes contain a substance that can rightly be called anti-vitamin B1.When heat treatment of these products, antivitamin B1 is almost completely inactivated. But in coffee this substance partially retains its anti-vitamin activity and after boiling.

From raw soybeans, corn kernels, a substance that reduces the activity of vitamin E. In a raw egg white, there is a mucoprotein called avidin. It is able to bind a strong vitamin K compound. When heated, avidin is destroyed, which convincingly demonstrates the greater benefit of the boiled egg than the raw one. In general, almost all traditional dishes are richer in vitamins than their antagonists. However, information about antivitamins can be useful for naturopaths, advocating the advantage of raw food before boiled!