Your body needs vitamins to form blood cells, build strong bones, and regulate the nervous system, but it can't generate them on its own. Here are the FDA's daily values for essential vitamins and the foods that contain them.

VITAMIN A - DAILY VALUE: 5,000 international units

• What it does: Aids in good vision; helps build and maintain skin, teeth, bones, and mucous membranes. Deficiency can increase susceptibility to infectious disease.
• What it may do: May inhibit the development of breast cancer; may increase resistance to infection in children.
• Food sources: Milk, eggs, liver, cheese, fish oil. Plus fruits and vegetables that contain beta-carotene. You need not consume preformed vitamin A if you eat foods rich in beta-carotene.
• Supplementation: Not recommended, since toxic in high doses.

VITAMIN B1 (THIAMIN) - DAILY VALUE: 1.5 milligrams

• What it does: Helps convert carbohydrates into energy. Necessary for healthy brain, nerve cells, and heart function.
• Food sources: Whole grains, enriched grain products, beans, meats, liver, wheat germ, nuts, fish, brewer's yeast.
• Supplementation: Not necessary, not recommended.

VITAMIN B2 (RIBOFLAVIN) - DAILY VALUE: 1.7 milligrams

• What it does: Helps cells convert carbohydrates into energy. Essential for growth, production of red blood cells, and health of skin and eyes.
• Food sources: Dairy products, liver, meat, chicken, fish, enriched grain products, leafy greens, beans, nuts, eggs, almonds.
• Supplementation: Not necessary and not recommended.

VITAMIN B3 (NIACIN) - DAILY VALUE: 20 milligrams

• What it does: Aids in release of energy from foods. Helps maintain healthy skin, nerves, and digestive system.
• What it may do: Megadoses lower high blood cholesterol.
• Food sources: Nuts, meat, fish, chicken, liver, enriched grain products, dairy products, peanut butter, brewer's yeast.
• Supplementation: Large doses may be prescribed by doctor to lower blood cholesterol. May cause flushing, liver damage, and irregular heart beat.

VITAMIN B5 (PANTOTHENIC ACID) - DAILY VALUE: 7 milligrams

• What it does: Vital for metabolism, production of essential body chemicals.
• Food sources: Whole grains, beans, milk, eggs, liver.
• Supplementation: Not necessary, not recommended. May cause diarrhea.

VITAMIN B6 (PYROXIDINE) - DAILY VALUE: 2.0 milligrams

• What it does: Vital in chemical reactions of proteins, amino acids. Helps maintain brain function and form red blood cells.
• What it may do: May help to boost immunity in the elderly.
• Food sources: Whole grains, bananas, meat, beans, nuts, wheat germ, brewer's yeast, chicken, fish, liver.
• Supplementation: Large doses can cause numbness and other neurological disorders.

• What it does: Necessary for development of red blood cells. Maintains normal functioning of nervous system.
• Food sources: Liver, beef, pork, poultry, eggs, milk, cheese, yogurt, shellfish, fortified cereals, and fortified soy products.
• Supplementation: Strict vegetarians may need supplements.

• What it does: Helps promote healthy gums and teeth; aids in iron absorption; maintains normal connective tissue; helps in the healing of wounds. As an antioxidant, it combats the adverse effects of free radicals.
• What it may do: May reduce the risk of lung, esophagus, stomach, and bladder cancers, as well as coronary artery disease; may prevent or delay cataracts and slow the aging process.
• Food sources: Citrus fruits and juices, strawberries, tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, potatoes, kale, cauliflower, cantaloupe, brussels sprouts.
• Supplementation: 250-500 mgs a day for smokers and anyone not consuming several fruits or vegetables rich in C daily. Larger doses may cause diarrhea.

VITAMIN D - DAILY VALUE: 400 international units

• What it does: Strengthens bones and teeth by aiding the absorption of calcium. Helps maintain phosphorus in the blood.
• What it may do: May reduce risk of osteoporosis, forestall breast and colon cancers.
• Food sources: Milk, fish oil, fortified margarine; also produced by the body in response to sunlight.
• Supplementation: 400 IU for vegetarians, the elderly, those who don't drink milk or get sun exposure. Toxic in high doses.

VITAMIN E - DAILY VALUE: 30 international units

• What it does: Helps form red blood cells. Combats adverse effects of free radicals.
• What it may do: May cut the risk of esophageal or stomach cancers and coronary artery disease; may prevent or delay cataracts; may boost immunity in elderly.
• Food sources: Vegetable oil, nuts, margarine, wheat germ, leafy greens, seeds, almonds, olives, asparagus.
• Supplementation: 200-800 IU advised for everybody; you can't get that much from food, especially on a low-fat diet.

BIOTIN (VITAMIN B) - DAILY VALUE: 300 micrograms

• What it does: Important in metabolism of protein, carbohydrates, and fats.
• Food sources: Eggs, milk, liver, mushrooms, bananas, tomatoes, whole grains.
• Supplementation: Not recommended.

FOLATE (VITAMIN B) (Also called Folacin or folic acid) - DAILY VALUE: 400 micrograms

• What it does: Important in synthesis of DNA, in normal growth, protein metabolism. Reduces risk of certain birth defects, notably spina bifida and encephaly.
• What it may do: May reduce the risk of cervical cancer.
• Food sources: Leafy greens, wheat germ, liver, beans, whole grains, broccoli, asparagus, citrus fruit, and juices.
• Supplementation: 400 mcg, from food or pills, for all women who may become pregnant, to help prevent birth defects.

SOURCE: U.S. Food and Drug Administration

We've started a library of "Living Footnotes" for this section, and welcome your suggestions and your URLs to make it more useful. Use our customized Lycos search to linkthink your way around the web, or feel free to consult the experts about the above topic.

Living Footnotes

• FDA Proposes that Folic Acid Be Added to Flour Bread and Other Grain Products
• Are looking for specific information on vitamins provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration? Just type the word "vitamin" in this form.