What are The Best Vitamins For Women Over 40?

Vitamins and nutrients are a group of soldiers that can protect you against age-related diseases. And the most acceptable way to raise this army is by eating a balanced diet. While it’s always vital to eat well, it becomes especially so after age 40, when the regulations shift.

Our body is just like any other artificial machine that needs proper fuel, servicing, and maintenance on a timely basis. We require a set of appropriate nutrients, minerals, vitamins, and other essential elements to maintain a healthy lifestyle. But males and females have different requirements according to their body type and age group.

A female body undergoes different phases in its life, like mensuration, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and menopause. For these reasons, many more hormones are produced inside a woman’s body compared to a man. Moreover, women are more prone to develop vitamin and mineral deficiency diseases like anaemia, beriberi, or Osteoporosis. To live a healthy life and fight all kinds of conditions, it is essential to include an accurate amount of nutrients in your daily diet, especially in your 40s or 50s.

This Article Covers

1. Benefits of Vitamins In Our Body

2. List of Vitamins That Are Essential For Women Over 40

• (a) Vitamin B-Complex
• (b) Vitamin B Food
• (c) Vitamin D
• (d) Vitamin D Food
• (e) Vitamin C
• (f) Vitamin C Food
• (g) Vitamin E
• (h) Vitamin E Food

3. Other Essential Supplements for Women Over 40

• (a) Calcium
• (b) Magnesium
• (c) Iron

Below is a list of the best multivitamins for women, the essential nutrients to be conscious of, and the best methods to obtain them. But before that, let’s understand why are vitamins necessary in the diet

Benefits of Vitamins In Our Body

Let’s get into the question, why are vitamins necessary in the diet or benefits of vitamins in our body.

Vitamins are natural blends that people require in minimal amounts. Most vitamins must be derived from food since the body either produces them or delivers nearly nothing. Vitamin D isn’t readily available in large amounts in food. When exposed to sunlight, the human body absorbs the vitamin.

Your body makes skin, muscle, and bone every day. It generates thick red blood that transports nutrients and oxygen to distant outposts, as well as nerve signals that journey thousands of miles through your brain and body networks. It also produces chemical messengers that travel from one organ to the next, giving commands for keeping you alive.

To run all of this, your body demands certain raw materials. These include at least 30 vitamins, minerals, and dietary components that your body requires but cannot make in adequate amounts on its own. Vitamins and minerals are classified as essential nutrients due to their ability to perform hundreds of functions in the body when combined. They assist in forming bones, wound healing, and immune system strengthening. They also help convert food into energy and mend cellular damage.

List of Vitamins That Are Essential For Women Over 40

Vitamin B-Complex

The vitamin B range has a total of 8 vitamins: riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, B6, B12, pantothenic acid, biotin, and folic acid. Each of these eight vitamins is equally essential to maintain the metabolism of a women’s body. Metabolism is the process through which your body breaks down the food to convert it into energy required to keep you fit and active. If the body’s metabolic rate slows down, the food you eat is not broken down properly, which further increases your weight and, at the same time, makes you weak.

Deficiency in these vitamin B kinds can lead to weakness, fatigue, poor memory, poor thinking skills, numbness in hands and feet, sore throat, etc. Moreover, Folic acid or Folate is essential for pregnant women to prevent congenital disabilities in the child.

Vitamin B Foods

Food items that provide these B vitamins are chicken, eggs, salmon, tuna, beef liver, trout, yoghurt, and cheese. However, as we grow old, our bodies become incapable of absorbing these vitamins from their food sources. Therefore, popping a vitamin B-complex pill( that combines all the eight vitamins) can be very beneficial for women over 40 or are soon going to be.

Vitamin D

One primary concern for women over 40 years of age is safeguarding themselves from Osteoporosis, a prevalent disease found in older women. Osteoporosis is a severe medical condition wherein the patient’s bones become brittle, thin, and fragile. Estrogen is a hormone that regulates bone health. But, due to several reasons, estrogen levels begin to decline as women age which ultimately causes bone loss.
Vitamin D is an essential element required to absorb calcium to maintain bone health. Deficiency of Vitamin D can lead to poor heart health, some types of cancer, and immune system disorders.

Vitamin D Foods

Some food rich in vitamin D can be oily fish like salmon and mackerel, red meat, liver, and mushrooms. Vitamin D insufficiency has been linked to both types of diabetes, heart-related disease, affects the central nervous system, and breast and colorectal cancers—all of which are more prevalent among the elderly. Vitamin D is also necessary for the body to absorb calcium.

Vitamin C

As you age, every part of the body needs special care and attention. While you may follow a good diet and use top beauty products, you can still feel your skin and hair growing old at a faster rate than you. Doctors have suggested that Vitamin C is a promoter in the synthesis of Collagen protein essential for body tissues. Low collagen levels in the body lead to several skin problems like fine lines, wrinkles, and dryness.

Vitamin C also plays a vital role in treating and preventing our skin from sun damage. In short, Vitamin C can help you achieve healthy skin. Moreover, Vitamin C has also been effective in reducing hair loss in both males and females.

Vitamin C Foods

The best Vitamin C food sources are citrus fruits, broccoli, strawberries, bell peppers, etc.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble nutrient that acts as an antioxidant in our body.  It is available in 8 forms, of which the alpha-tocopherol form is the essential one for human bodies. As women age, they become more vulnerable to oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is a process caused by the free radicals inside your body and can develop cancer cells and heart issues in the body.

Vitamin E, an antioxidant, fights to neutralize the free radicals and reduces oxidative stress. Moreover, Vitamin E is a common ingredient used in beauty products as it safeguards your skin from sun damage.

Vitamin E Foods

The best food sources of Vitamin E can be nuts like almonds, hazelnuts, vegetable oils, sunflower seeds, and green leafy vegetables.

Other Essential Supplements for Women Over 40

Calcium

Calcium is an essential mineral that our body uses in the regeneration and maintenance of our bones. Besides bone health, calcium also plays a vital role in performing other body functions, like muscle contraction, heart functioning, and essential biochemical reactions. Food items rich in calcium are tofu, milk, cheese, other dairy products, broccoli, spinach, and almonds.

Magnesium

Magnesium is a mineral that helps regulate your blood pressure which women over 40 years are already concerned about. Adequate magnesium levels in your blood will reduce inflammation, prevent diabetes and keep your heart healthy. Soy, nuts, dark leafy green vegetables, and seeds are good sources of magnesium.

Iron

Iron is one of the most vital nutrients that is essential for women. Women need to regulate their iron levels which gets Imbalances when they are menstruating or are pregnant.
Red meat, pork, poultry, leafy vegetables, beans, and soy are some of the best food sources rich in iron.

It is normal to feel a little bit of weakness or fatigue after you have entered your 40s; however, having a regular checkup of your body is always recommended. Having a balanced and healthy diet can keep up your nutrient levels; daily vitamins are also not a bad option, provided you have your doctor’s nod.