Essential Micronutrients: Vitamins and Essential Fatty Acids

Abstract

Biochemical processes cannot operate without what traditionally are called vitamins. The cell membranes cannot be maintained and production of crucial cytokines cannot occur without the two essential fatty acids. Vitamins have a variety of functions with some having dual roles ranging from regulators of cell division, structural components of key tissues, coenzymes, and antioxidants Vitamins A and D have provided the medicinal chemist with the basic structure to develop pharmacologically active molecules indicated for a variety of diseases. Some of the vitamins are toxic when taken in excess and have defined tolerable upper intake levels. Long‐chain fatty acids are essential because of human's inability to introduce double bonds on the third or sixth carbon from the terminal end of the chain. Linoleic acid is the precursor to prostaglandins, thromboxanes, leukotrienes, and lipoxins, and α‐linolenic acid is the precursor of long‐chain acids that are components of lipid membranes. Recent meta‐analyses and recent double blind studies on large numbers of human subjects indicate that taking vitamin and fatty acid supplements appear to not be beneficial providing a balanced diet is consumed.