Written By: Bhavyajyoti Chilukoti | Published : November 27, 2017 1:10 PM IST
Minerals: Fresh dates have a host of minerals including magnesium and calcium.
I drink a full glass of milk every day and eat cheese, but still, I am deficient in calcium.
I include iron-rich foods in my diet to meet my daily requirement of iron, but I am still anemic.
It is wise to meet your daily recommended allowance of nutrients through food but does your body really get all the nutrients you eat daily? The answer is NO. This is because whatever you consume isn t entirely absorbed. And the recommended daily allowance(RDA) for all nutrients is made in a way to compensate for the losses due to bioavailability of the same. Confused? Ms Rina Baliga, Dietician, Mumbai explains about the bioavailability of nutrients and also sheds light on the factors that affect the bioavailability of common nutrients. Find out how much of each nutrient should you consume in a day.
What is bioavailability?
Simply put, bioavailability is how much of the nutrient you consume is absorbed and made available to the body out of the actual amount of a nutrient you consume at that particular time. Although all nutrients after ingestion go from the gastrointestinal tract to the bloodstream and then into the cells, the bioavailability depends on various factors.
What are the factors that affect the bioavailability of minerals?
When you know how you can maximize your absorption, you can make optimal use of the goodness each food offers!
Interestingly, absorption of minerals is comparatively more difficult than that of vitamins. Here are few main factors that affect the bioavailability of minerals.
1. Source of the food: In general, mineral bioavailability from heme (animal) sources is higher than non-heme (plant) sources. For example, iron has a higher bioavailability from animal sources such as organ meat than from plant sources such as dates, spinach etc. because phytates and oxalates present in the latter interfere with the absorption of iron.
2. Existing deficiency or sufficiency: Theabsorption of minerals is higher in case there is a specific mineral deficiency. On the other hand, in case of a high nutritional status for a particular mineral, your body identifies it as sufficient and reduces its uptake from the gut accordingly. Read more on signs of vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
3. Inhibitors in foods: There are certain compounds in food that can hinder the bioavailability of nutrients. These include:
4. Mineral-Mineral interactions: Minerals compete in terms of absorption and transport and hence, affects their consequent bioavailability. So zinc can inhibit copper absorption when taken together. Also, read about nutrients for 3 different stages of a woman s life.
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