Hello to all readers! Healthlab continue to serve you with great healthy tips as always. In this article, we will be talking about minerals.
There are 18 types of minerals which are essential to our body, both those already contained in our body and those contained in the food that we eat. We can divide minerals into 2 major groups. The first group – Macro Minerals are the minerals which our body would use more than 100mg per day. The second group – Trace Minerals are the minerals which our body would use less than 100mg per day.
Today we will be talking about the Macro Minerals which consisting of 7 types as follows:
CALCIUM – helps keep our teeth and bones strong and healthy, decrease the risk of having Osteodystrophy and fragile bones, help with weight control and protect Cancellous bones. Source of Calcium are milk, cheese, tofu, soybean, peanut, dry nuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds, broccoli, green cabbage, sardine, and salmon. However, if we received more than 2,500mg of calcium per day, it may cause high calcium in blood resulting as having constipation and increase the risk of having kidney stone and infection of the urinary tract.
PHOSPHORUS – helps in creating bones and teeth, Carbohydrate absorption and creating neurons. Source of Phosphorus are egg, fish, poultry, meat, beans, whole-wheat, grain, and non-grind grains. Lack of Phosphorus may cause you Gingivitis and Rachitis.
POTASSIUM – helps keeping balance of the water in our body, maintain our heart rates and retain our conscious with happy and bright mind by transmitting oxygen to the brain and dispose body waste. Source of Potassium are yogurt, fruits with sour taste, banana, peach, guava, cantaloupe, tomato, all green vegetables, and beans. However, receiving excessive amount of Potassium (more than 18g per day), can be harmful to our body, but lack of Potassium may also result as Edema and Hypoglycemia.
MAGNESIUM – helps with lipid metabolism and converted into energy, decrease the pain from Anginapain, and protect the formation of calcium kidney stones and stones in the gallbladder. Source of Magnesium are fish and shellfish, beans, almond, whole-wheat, grains, non-grind grains, fig, dark green vegetables, and banana. Lack of Magnesium may diminish protective immunity of our body, caused malfunction in Muscular system and Digestive system, destroy certain nerve system, and caused cartilage.
SODIUM AND CHLORIDE – Sodium helps maintain efficient nerve system and muscular system, and helps with the dissolution of Calcium and other minerals which are blood soluble. Source of Sodium are salt, aquatic animals with shell (shrimp and crab), dried meat, bacon, carrot, beetroots, and artichoke. Chloride helps keeping balance of the water and the acidity – alkalinity in our body. Chloride can be found in most natural food, but can be found the most in meats and other kind of food which were flavored with salt. Lack of Chloride usually happens together with the lack of Sodium. Receiving limited amount of Sodium Chloride may cause the chloride level in urine to be lower, follow by the deceasing of the Chloride level in tissue. Loss of excessive amount of Sodium by sweat or diarrhea will caused loss of Chloride also. In case of vomiting, our body may loss Chloride more than Sodium. Lack of Sodium and Chloride may cause High Blood Pressure resulting as nerve pain and incomplete digestion of carbohydrates.
SULPHUR – is an essential mineral in keeping strong and healthy hair, skin and nails. Source of Sulphur are lean meat, egg, fish, dry beans, garlic, kale, and cabbage. There is still no suggested amount of Sulphur to be taken per day. However, we should received an appropriate amount of Sulphur as same as Protein.
And that was all for this article about Macro Minerals, next article we will be talking about Trace Minerals. Thank you all for reading and remember not to watch too much football that you forget to get enough sleep 😉
