Vitamins improve your health and help your body grow. Vitamins A, C, D, E, and K and B vitamins like folate and riboflavin are among the 13 critical vitamins. The best approach to satisfy your vitamin requirements is to consume a well-balanced diet. If you’re lacking in a specific nutrient, you may supplement your diet with foods rich in that vitamin. However, before using supplements, consult with your physician or a dietician. Furthermore, a vitamin blood test is a wonderful way to keep track of your vitamin levels.
Why Is the Vitamin Blood Test Done?
A vitamin blood test may assist in establishing whether a person is deficient in specific vitamins or nutrients. To conduct the test, your physician takes your blood and determines whether you are low in any vital vitamins or minerals. If necessary, they may prescribe a more precise supplement for you to consume. Medical experts request this test for individuals who have any of the following indications that have not been adequately recognized or treated.
- Unexpected weight loss
- Fatigue
- Hair Loss
- Joint discomfort
Furthermore, using this test may identify whether you are vitamin deficient or have too much iron in your body. Deficiency is more frequent in those who adopt mainly restricted diets, such as vegetarians or vegans, and it may lead to health concerns, including anaemia. The most commonly measured deficiencies are iron deficiency, folate/folic acid deficit, B12 shortage, calcium inadequacy, and Vitamin D deficiency. On the other hand, excess iron is also harmful and may lead to toxicity.
What Happens If You Aren’t Getting Enough Vitamins?
Low levels of vital vitamins may cause various symptoms, including exhaustion, muscle aches, a weakened immune system, a depressed mood, and nail, hair, and skin issues. Since vitamin B12 is mainly found in animals, vegetarians are in danger of insufficiency. A lack of B12 may cause exhaustion, anxiety, and significant nervous system issues. Individuals with diseases that limit vitamin intake, such as Crohn’s disease and coeliac disease, as well as those on specific drugs and the elderly, may be at risk of various vitamin deficiencies. Also, elderly individuals may not be available for efficient uptake owing to decreased gastric acid levels leading to vitamin deficiency. Furthermore, individuals who smoke may have low vitamin C levels, and obese and overweight adults have been shown to have low vitamin C, D, B12, and folate levels.
What Happens if You Consume an Excessive Amount of Vitamins?
Excessive amounts of vitamin A in the diet or supplements may harm the liver and cause birth abnormalities. However, to be detrimental, you’d have to ingest excessive doses of vitamin A every day for many years. Also, high doses of vitamin C may induce diarrhoea. At the same time, too much niacin can produce liver damage in the long run, despite the fact that we release excess amounts of water-soluble vitamins during urination. Thus, if you’re consuming multiple medicines, be careful you’re not getting too many vitamins – for instance, combining a multivitamin with cod liver oil, which is high in vitamin A to avoid unnecessary illnesses.
Vitamin levels must be tested through a vitamin blood test since not everyone receives nutrients in the same manner. The amount of nutrition absorbed is affected by the kind of vitamin, the quantity and quality of food consumed, and other variables, including age and health status. Therefore, getting in touch with your body and responding to what it has to say is an important part of living a healthy lifestyle.
