What You Need To Know About Water-Soluble & Fat-Soluble Vitamins

Another variable I have to manage is their "supplement graveyard." You know, that cabinet filled with all the vitamins, powders, and potions that just grows and grows. You take one for a few weeks and move on to the next, never really knowing why you chose them or what they do. An important thing to know about your supplements is the difference between water-soluble or fat-soluble vitamins, so let's begin there:

Water-soluble vitamins are naturally found in the—you guessed it—water that resides in different foods. Unlike their fat-soluble cousins, water-soluble vitamins aren't normally stored in the body. If they're not gobbled up by the body, they're simply excreted in the urine. This means that water-soluble toxicity is uncommon, and it also means that we need to make sure to get them regularly from the foods we eat and supplementation, if necessary.

This family of vitamins consists of eight different compounds that have similar health benefits and functions and are often found in the same foods. Meet the vitamins in the B-complex family:

In addition to getting B vitamins from our foods, some Bs can also be made by our healthy gut bacteria! B2, B5, B6, B7, B9, and B12 can all be made by the microbiome. As if you needed another reason to support a healthy gut! Here's why you need B vitamins:

Luckily, quite a few foods naturally contain B vitamins, including:

Vitamin C is probably the most well-known supplement, likely because many people start upping their daily intake when they start feeling sick. Here's why vitamin C is so important:

You can supplement with vitamin C, but there are a ton of foods that also contain a bunch of this healthy nutrient:

Fat-soluble vitamins are dissolved in fat and need to be paired with healthy fats to be bioavailable. The modern Western diet, which has long feared fatty foods, is dreadfully deficient in fat-soluble vitamins. These vitamins are immensely important for hormone, brain, and immune health. Unlike water-soluble vitamins—which are cleared out in water—fat-soluble vitamins can be toxic if taken in excess since your body stores them instead of peeing them out.

Vitamin A is essential for equipping you with a strong immune system. And vitamin A deficiency has also been linked to inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes. Why? Researchers seem to think this has to do with our dendritic cells. These alarms of the immune system can send out a "red alert" to stimulate immunity or a "calm down" message that tones down excessive immunity that can damage the body. The "calm down" message makes use of vitamin A. Vitamin A can be found in the following foods:

Plant carotenes, a precursor to vitamin A, are found in sweet potatoes and carrots, but the conversion rate to the usable form of vitamin A (retinol) is very weak. In fact, research suggests that just 3 percent of beta-carotenes gets converted in a healthy adult.

As with vitamin A, vitamin D is most abundant in animal and dairy fats like:

But soaking up some time in the sun is one of the best ways as well. Aim for about 20 to 60 minutes a day, depending on your complexion. And consider getting tests done every few months to ensure your vitamin D levels are healthy.

Vitamin E refers to several nutrients known as tocopherols. While alpha-tocopherol seems to be the most bioavailable, beta-tocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, and delta-tocopherol all work synergistically in foods and in your body. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant needed to calm inflammation and support healthy, balanced immune and hormonal systems. Vitamin D can be found naturally in:

Looking for a new supplement? Read this first.