Reading Comprehension "Vitamins"

Good afternoon and welcome to the next edition of "Your body. Your food. Your health." The topic of today's program is vitamins, one of the main components of the human body, which is still a mystery to many people ... at least this is what listeners' letters testify to. Today we try to answer as many of your questions as possible about the impact on human health vitamins in the form of food supplements.

So, what are vitamins? Well, vitamins are one of the five elements essential for a healthy body. The others are proteins, which we get from meat; carbohydrates, which we get from pasta and bread; fats and minerals. Actually, the name vitamin comes from Latin “vita” which means “life.”

Now, before we go on, let me clarify something. Some people may believe that vitamins and minerals are similar because they’re combined in the various food supplements on the market. But they’re not. Vitamins are organic compounds, whereas minerals are inorganic substances. For example, calcium is a mineral, it is not a vitamin.

Actually, even vitamins differ from one another in their chemical composition and the way they act. Nevertheless, we can see two main vitamin groups: fat-soluble and water-soluble, that is, vitamins that can dissolve either into fat or into water. Let’s have a closer look at those two groups.

Fat-soluble are vitamins A, D, E and K. Their common characteristic is that the body can store them in fat, in the liver and in the kidneys. So, we don’t need to take them on a daily basis.

Water-soluble are vitamin C and the vitamin B complex. The body cannot store them, so we must make sure that they are contained in our daily diet.

Why are vitamins so important for the human health? The main reason is that vitamins help the metabolism of three of the important elements we mentioned before: proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. In other words, without vitamins the body cannot process these essential substances. Vitamins also help the body create blood cells, hormones, chemicals in the nervous system and genetic material. Unfortunately, we still don’t know much about the complex ways in which vitamins operate in the body. Actually, we are not even sure about the precise effect of certain vitamins, for example, vitamin E.

You may be asking, “How do we get these vital elements?” Well, the main sources of vitamins are just around the corner at your local supermarket. We can see two categories: plant products such as fresh fruit and vegetables; vegetable oil and margarine; bread, pasta and cereals; and animal products; meat, poultry and fish; liver, heart and kidneys; and dairy products, that is fresh milk, butter and cheese. Now, there is one vitamin which you get for free, so to speak. Most of vitamin D is produced in the body when the skin is exposed to sunlight. And here is an important piece of information for vegetarians who don’t eat any animal products. Because vitamin B12 is found only in animal products, vegans should take vitamin B12 supplements. Vitamin supplements may also be needed by pregnant women and people on special diets.

I would like to end this program with a word of caution. Vitamins are essential for our health and we do need to ensure that we take the necessary amounts, but we can have too much of a good thing. Yes, it may sound strange to some of you, but taking more than the amount we need will result in a number of health problems. This happens particularly with fat-soluble vitamins. For example, large amounts of vitamin A can cause anything from headaches and skin rashes to growth problems in children. Even large doses of vitamin C, which is not stored in the body, can destroy vitamin B12 and reduce calcium in bones.

So be careful when taking food supplements. Good day and good health!

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1. The name of the program is “You and Your Vitamins.”

One of the dangers in taking fat-soluble vitamins is that:

Vitamin B12 is found:

Vitamins are not the components of the human body.

Vitamins and minerals are similar.

Vitamin D is produced:

Actually, we are not even sure about the precise effect of certain vitamins, for example:

Vitamins also help the body:

Fat-soluble vitamins:

Vitamins are different from one another:

We get proteins from meat, pasta and bread.

Vitamins are organic compounds, whereas minerals are inorganic substances.

Vitamins are divided into two categories.

Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in the fat, liver and kidney.

Two water-soluble vitamins are A and C.

The primary function of vitamins is to metabolize proteins, carbohydrates and fats.

The effects of some vitamins are not known.

Most of vitamin E is produced in the body when the skin is exposed to sunlight.

Vitamin B12 is found only in plant products such as vegetables.

Human’s body cannot process the essential substances without vitamins.

The main sources of vitamins are the plants around us.

The main sources of vitamins are animal products.

It is detrimental to one’s health to take too much of some vitamins.

The information about the use of vitamins is useful for every person.

Let's take vitamins without restrictions.

Information about vitamins:

The word “vitamin” comes from a word for:

Vitamins are:

Find pairs: