Vitamin A

• Vitamin A, a fat soluble vitamin, aids in cellular growth. It maintains the linings in your eyes, your lungs and within your digestive tract. These linings help to prevent bacteria and viral infections from entering and infecting your body.
  
  

Vitamin D

• Also a fat-soluble vitamin, vitamin D works closely with the mineral calcium to maintain healthy bone mass. Your blood also needs calcium and vitamin D helps maintain proper levels of calcium in your circulatory system.
  
  

Vitamins E and K

• These two fat soluble vitamins work in concert to maintain a healthy circulatory system. They aid in preventing blood clots while at the same time help your blood to clot when you are injured or cut. Vitamin E is also an antioxidant. It aids in control of free radicals, the by-products of your metabolism that cause cell damage.
  
  

Vitamin C

• Vitamin C, well known for boosting the immune system, is a water soluble vitamin. Vitamin C also allows your body to produce collagen; collagen keeps your skin from drying out and becoming wrinkled. This diverse nutrient also aids in forming enzymes, necessary for delivering nutrients, carrying waste to the liver and balancing cholesterol levels.
  
  

Vitamin B Complex

• This water soluble group consists of B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9 and B12. This group works together to perform several functions for your benefit. B1 provides thiamine, which converts food into energy. B2 is made up of riboflavin. This nutrient helps maintain your skin, hair and eyes. Niacin comes from B3 and aids in flushing toxins from your system. B5 provides pantothenic acid, which aids in controlling cholesterol levels. Piridoxine, brought to you by B6, synthesizes amino acids that produce other compounds such as hormones. B7 provides biotin for metabolizing fats, carbohydrates and protein. Folic acid is obtained with ingestion of B9. Folic acid boosts your immune system and prevents infections. B12 is the big gun of this complex. Known as cobolamin and cyanocobalamin, B12 aids in maintaining a healthy nervous system, metabolizes carbohydrates, protein and fats, aids in absorption of calcium and other minerals, and creates a protective layer around cells. It also aids in DNA replication, the manufacture of red blood cells and helps maintain healthy hormone levels.
  
  

Effects

• A well balanced diet can provide all the necessary nutrients for your body to function properly. But should you have a less than perfect diet, are recovering from illness or surgery, are over the age of 40 or suffer from a digestive disorder such as celiac disease, you would probably benefit from a supplemental multivitamin. Otherwise, a well balanced diet is likely to provide you with all the vitamins your body needs to function properly.