EDITOR’S NOTE: In her column Beyond Rx, Andrea Wong, a 4th year Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) candidate from the University of Waterloo, and a very new member to the Manitoulin community, will be exploring topics on health and wellness, medical advances, and everything in between in the pages of this newspaper
The ABCs of Vitamins A,B, and C:
Part II: Nutrition
by Andrea Wong
Hippocrates, the famous Greek physician known as the ‘father of medicine’, once said, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Unfortunately, there is no shortcut pill to good health. Health really requires a good foundation from a well-balanced diet that contains all your necessary vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients. This week, I recruited a good friend of mine and an expert on vitamins to share some of her knowledge. Bnehns Gordon-Corbiere is a 4th year student at the University of Western Ontario studying Nutrition and Dietetics and is currently working as a summer student at the M’Chigeeng Health Centre. Here’s what she has to say about vitamins.
Aanii Islanders! Let’s start with a fundamental question: what is a vitamin? A vitamin is a complex, essential, fragile molecule that provides our body with benefits ranging from growth, healthy reproduction and healing. Vitamins work synergistically to promote, prolong, and preserve our vitality. Vitamins A, C, and E behave as antioxidants throughout the body. They curb any inflammation triggered by an external stressor to ensure no further damage is done to the body. Vitamin K assists in blood health by promoting damage repair to the blood vessels and other tissues. The complex of B vitamins release of energy found within carbohydrates, fat, and protein so that the body is able to utilize the energy found within these nutrients. As the functions of these vitamins illustrate, it is essential to consume them in sufficient quantities to assist in overall well-being.
While healthy bodies are capable of producing vitamins, the amount made may be insufficient in quantity to support our body’s needs. Luckily, vitamins are generously scattered throughout the foods found on Canada’s Food Guide and Canada’s Indigenous Food Guide. It is by consuming a variety of food that we can ensure sufficient vitamin intake for no single serving of food contains every essential vitamin. For example, while vitamin C is found abundantly in richly coloured fruits and vegetables, it isn’t found in meat products.
Finally, vitamins are easily damaged by heat, light, and oxygen exposure. Due to their delicate nature, be sure to avoid excessive high heat and extensive cooking times when cooking with fresh food for optimal vitamin retention.
As Bnehns stresses, our body requires a nutrient dense diet to not only maintain proper daily functioning but also to prevent and treat diseases. For those who are on medications that affect vitamin levels or on restrictive diets, it is always a good idea to consult a dietician to help individualize your diet to meet your body’s needs. A great resource is EatRight Ontario where they have registered dietitians answering your questions by phone (toll free number: 1-877-510-510-2) or email and can also direct you to find nutrition services in your community.
