Minerals
What are minerals?
Minerals are inorganic elements found in the ground that our bodies need. Our bodies cannot make minerals, so we need to get minerals from our food.
Minerals are used as building materials in the body tissues, which includes bones, blood and teeth. They also help regulate different bodily functions, such as the heart beat, blood clotting, and sending messages along our nerves. Minerals in our body must be in balance, for us to be healthy.
Minerals are hard for our body to absorb. For example, when we eat food containing zinc, our body only absorbs maybe 40% of the zinc and eliminates the rest. However, if our body supplies are low, our body is intuitive and naturally absorbs more of that mineral.
Minerals can be divided into two groups, macro minerals which we need in large amounts and micro minerals or trace minerals, which we need in small amounts.
| Macro Minerals | Micro Minerals |
| Calcium Magnesium Phosphorus |
Boron Chromium Copper Iodine Iron Manganese Potassium Selenium Zinc |
Source: The Real Vitamin & Mineral Book- Using Supplements for Optimal Health (2nd Edition), by Dr. Shari Lieberman, PhD and Nancy Bruning. Published by Avery Publishing Group, New York in 1997
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