The Ronan Pioneer

Some Facts About Vitamins

(Prepared by the United States Department of Agriculture.)

Our knowledge about vitamins has been undergoing constant expansion. It is still far from complete. First came recognition of the fact that in natural food materials there existed, in minute quantities, certain substances other than proteins, fats, carbohydrates and salts, which appeared to be essential for normal nutrition. Further investigation showed that these substances, or vitamins, also prevented various pathological conditions or "deficiency diseases."

Early in the work these separate vitamins were identified, and called A, B, and C. Each one had functions peculiar to itself. Several years later two more vitamins, D and E, were discovered. Comparatively recently it has been found that another vitamin, named G, occurs in a great many foods which are also rich in vitamin B. The identification of vitamin G was obscured for a long time because of this parallel occurrence.

The functions of the two vitamins differ. Vitamin B prevents beriberi, while vitamin G prevents pellagra. An abundance of both vitamins is essential for growth and well-being at all ages, but particularly necessary for nursing mothers and young children. As both occur to a large extent in the same foods and in a very wide variety of foods, a varied diet containing fruits and vegetables will usually be satisfactory in respect to these two factors.

The bureau of home economics of the United States Department of Agriculture suggests the following foods as good sources of vitamin B: Asparagus, beans, fresh and dried, brains, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cowpeas, egg yolk, fish roe, grapefruit, kidney, lemons, lentils, whole grain products, lettuce, liver, milk, nuts, okra, onions, oranges, parsley, parsnips, peas, potatoes, pineapples, rutabagas, spinach and other greens, tomatoes. With so long a list from which to choose, the diet may be pleasingly varied and yet always meet the requirements for an abundance of vitamin B.