Vitamin Supplements

Meat and fish contain useful amounts of B vitamins together with small amounts of vitamin A and D. The richest sources are the gland meats, liver, kidneys, pancreas (sweetbreads) and brain. Pork is a good source of thiamin and fatty fish (herrings, mackerel etc.) is one of the best dietary sources of vitamin D. The way we cook our meat is governed by custom as well as convenience. The high rise in the cost of meat has made it necessary to buy cheaper cuts. This means longer cooking time and it will bring about some loss of the heat sensitive vitamins particularly thiamin. Read the rest of this entry »

The next group of foodstuffs is the cereals. In this country we associate the word cereal with breakfast foods, but it covers all foods made from grain. This includes wheat, barley, maize, millet, rice, sorghum and many more. Cereal is often described as a staple food, meaning that it is the main food of a particular country. Wheat is our staple whereas rice is the staple of many Asian countries. All grains are rich in B vitamins and products made from grains provide many of the B complex group. Grains are the seeds of a plant from the grass family, Gramineae. The seed contains starch as a food for the new plant, and also a rich supply of vitamins, minerals and oil. These are found in the outer husk of the seed and in the ‘germ’ or embryo. Read the rest of this entry »