How, why, and where to get your daily vitamins and minerals

FOR THE NEXT FEW POSTS, I WILL UPLOAD INFORMATION ON THE DIFFERENT VITAMINS AND MINERALS LISTED BELOW. WHICH FOODS HAVE THE MOST AND HOW MUCH YOU NEED.

TODAY: VITAMIN C, VITAMIN D, VITAMIN E.

Benefits of Vitamin C
Vitamin C helps your body metabolize proteins into energy, boosts your immune system, builds collagen in your skin, promotes healing, and aids in joint repair. It also helps keep your arteries young and prevents fatty plaque buildup on blood vessel walls. Wow!

Recommended Amount: How Much You Need
To prevent vitamin C deficiency, government guidelines recommend a daily dose of 90 milligrams (mg) for men, 75 mg for women. Doctors recommend that you get 1,200 mg of vitamin C per day from food and supplements to make you younger. This higher amount not only prevents deficiency but also helps prevent disease and needless aging.

Good Sources of Vitamin C
Many fruits and vegetables are naturally high in vitamin C, so make sure to include plenty of these in your diet:

Peaches, frozen and sweetened (1 cup)	235 mg
Red bell pepper, raw (1 medium)	152 mg
Broccoli florets, cooked (1 cup)	101 mg
Strawberries (1 cup)	97 mg
Green bell pepper, raw (1 medium)	96 mg
Papaya (1 cup)	86 mg
Kiwifruit (1 medium)	70 mg
Orange (1 medium)	70 mg
Cantaloupe (1 cup)	59 mg
Mango (1 medium)	57 mg
Brussels sprouts, cooked (4 medium)	52 mg

Benefits of Vitamin D
Vitamin D is increasingly being viewed as important. It's well known for working with calcium to strengthen your bones, but it may also help prevent osteoarthritis, reduce your risk of certain cancers, fight inflammation, and help regulate blood pressure.

Recommended Amount: How Much You Need
There's mounting evidence to support a bump in the daily dose of vitamin D. While the government recommendations are 400 international units (IU) per day if you're under 70 years of age and 600 IU if you're over 70, several members of the Scientific Advisory Board now recommend taking 1,000 IU of vitamin D if you're under 60 years of age and 1,200 IU if you're over 60. The daily upper intake level for D is 2,000 IU a day -- so anything up to that is generally considered safe.

Good Sources of Vitamin D
There are three ways to get vitamin D: food, sunlight, and supplements. If you're not getting enough from your diet, or you don't spend much time outdoors (just 10–20 minutes in the sun can significantly boost your body's production of vitamin D), take a daily vitamin D supplement.

Salmon, canned (3 ounces)	530 IU
Salmon, cooked (3.5 ounces)	240–360 IU
Tuna, canned (3 ounces)	200 IU
Soymilk, fortified (8 ounces)	100 IU
Orange juice, fortified (8 ounces)	100 IU
Milk, low fat, fortified (8 ounces)	98 IU
Cereal, fortified (1 cup)	40–50 IU
Eggs (1 large)	20–26 IU
Swiss cheese (1 ounce)	12 IU

Benefits of Vitamin E
Vitamin E is an antioxidant that may help prevent heart disease, Alzheimer's, and two common vision stealers -- macular degeneration and cataracts.

Recommended Amount: How Much You Need
Government guidelines recommend a daily intake of 22.5 international units (IU) of vitamin E, but this is only enough to prevent deficiency. For optimal health and disease prevention, doctors recommend that you aim for 400 international units (IU) of vitamin E per day. It's tough to get all the vitamin E you need from food alone, so top off your supply with a daily vitamin E supplement.

Tip: Take your E with C (1,200 mg). These two antioxidant vitamins work together to prevent the oxidation that causes clogs in blood vessel walls, and pairing them on a daily basis can make you 3 years younger.

Good Sources of Vitamin E

Cereal: raisin bran, corn flakes (1 cup)	20 IU
Almonds (1/4 cup)	14 IU
Sunflower seeds (1/4 cup)	12 IU
Spinach, cooked from frozen (1 cup)	10 IU
Hazelnuts (1/4 cup)	8 IU
Safflower oil (1 tablespoon)	7 IU
Red bell pepper (1 cup)	4 IU
Avocado (1/2 medium)	3 IU
Olive oil (1 tablespoon)	3 IU
Mango (1 medium)	3 IU
Tomatoes, canned (1 cup)	3 IU

WHAT’S FOR DINNER?!

Mustard-Maple Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloin with a sweet-and-savory mahogany-colored sauce is both elegant and easy--ideal for a casual get-together. Make It a Meal: Serve with quick-cooking barley, roasted delicata squash and a Pinot Noir.

Prep Time: 15 min

Prep Time: 30 min

SERVES 4

Ingredients

3 tablespoon(s) Dijon mustard, divided
1/2 teaspoon(s) kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper
1 pound(s) pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat
2 teaspoon(s) canola oil
1/4 cup(s) cider vinegar
2 tablespoon(s) maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoon(s) chopped fresh sage

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Combine 1 tablespoon mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl; rub all over pork. Heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and brown on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center registers 145 degrees F about 15 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.
Place the skillet over medium-high heat (take care, the handle will still be hot), add vinegar, and boil, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, about 30 seconds. Whisk in maple syrup and the remaining 2 tablespoons mustard; bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes.
Slice the pork. Add any accumulated juices to the sauce along with sage. Serve the pork topped with the sauce.