Micronutrients
Vitamins, Minerals, and Coenzymes
About this volume
Micronutrients is Book F3 of The Performance & Human Physiology Encyclopedia — a 93-volume, university-level library on the metabolic first principles every nutrition decision rests on. It is written for dietitians, nutrition students, coaches and anyone managing their own body: deep enough that a professional already trained in the field keeps learning, structured clearly enough that a motivated reader can follow every step.
How this book is written
- University level, without dilution. Exact scientific terminology, defined at first use — mechanisms, not just conclusions.
- Evidence graded, not asserted. Major claims carry a level, from A (strong) to D (expert opinion), so you always know how much weight to give them.
- Numbers, formulas, worked examples. Reference ranges, equations and solved calculations you can apply the same day.
- Myths tested against the evidence. Where a popular claim does not survive the evidence, the book says so — and shows why.
- References at the end of every chapter. Sources cited in APA 7 style, plus a master bibliography.
For general information and education only; not medical advice. Consult a qualified health professional before acting on its content.
Read an excerpt
From Chapter 1 — What Micronutrients Are: Vitamins, Minerals, Coenzymes, and the Reference Intakes
"They supply no energy and weigh almost nothing on the plate — yet without these milligrams and micrograms, the machinery that burns your food, builds your body, and defends your cells grinds to a halt."
Books F1 and F2 covered the macronutrients — the energy and the building material. But energy is useless without the tools to release it, and building material is inert without the catalysts to assemble it. Those tools and catalysts are the micronutrients: thirteen vitamins and some fifteen essential minerals that, in milligram and microgram amounts, run the body's chemistry. A diet can be perfect in calories and macronutrients and still fail — fatigue, anemia, weakened immunity, poor bone, impaired performance — for want of a single vitamin or mineral. This chapter builds the framework needed to understand all of them: what they are, how they work, how much you need, what too little or too much does, and how to tell whether you are getting enough. It is the lens for the twelve chapters that follow.
What is inside
The 13 chapters of this volume.
- 01
What Micronutrients Are: Vitamins, Minerals, Coenzymes, and the Reference Intakes
Definitions, coenzymes/cofactors, DRIs & U-shaped dose-response, deficiency/toxicity, bioavailability, status
- 02
Fat-Soluble Vitamins I: Vitamin A and Vitamin D
Retinoids/carotenoids, vision/genes; vitamin D synthesis, status, VITAL
- 03
Fat-Soluble Vitamins II: Vitamin E and Vitamin K
The antioxidant supplement lesson; γ-carboxylation, warfarin, newborn K
- 04
Water-Soluble Vitamins I: The Energy-Releasing B-Complex
B1/B2/B3/B5/B7 coenzymes; beriberi, pellagra; the "B = energy" myth
- 05
Water-Soluble Vitamins II: B6, Folate, B12, and One-Carbon Metabolism
Methylation cycle, homocysteine, megaloblastic anemia, neural-tube defects
- 06
Vitamin C and the Antioxidant Network
Collagen, iron absorption, scurvy; the antioxidant paradox & hormesis
- 07
Major Minerals I: Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium
Bone team, calcium homeostasis & supplement controversy; Mg inadequacy
- 08
Major Minerals II: Electrolytes — Sodium, Potassium, Chloride
The Na/K pump, blood pressure, the Na:K ratio, DASH
- 09
Trace Minerals I: Iron, Zinc, Copper
Hepcidin, iron deficiency/overload, zinc–copper antagonism
- 10
Trace Minerals II: Iodine, Selenium, and the Ultratrace Elements
Thyroid, iodized salt, selenium's narrow range, chromium myth
- 11
Coenzymes, Cofactors, and Phytochemicals
The catalytic toolkit; phytochemical classes, Nrf2/hormesis; choline
- 12
Bioavailability, Interactions, and Assessing Status
Enhancers/inhibitors, mineral competition, ABCD status assessment
- 13
Micronutrients for Health, Performance, and Special Populations
Shortfall nutrients, athletes, plant-based, life stages, supplement framework
Volume details
Topics covered
- vitamins and minerals guide
- micronutrient deficiency symptoms
- recommended daily allowance vitamins
- vitamin and mineral supplement safety
- iron zinc magnesium calcium
- nutrient absorption and interactions
- vitamin B12 folate and B6
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