Vitamin Definition–noun | any of a group of organic substances essential in small quantities to normal metabolism, found in minute amounts in natural foodstuffs or sometimes produced synthetically: deficiencies of vitamins produce specific disorders. |
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Related topics from Britannicavitamin
any of several organic substances that are necessary in small quantities for normal health and growth in higher forms of animal life. Vitamins are distinct in several ways from other biologically ...
vitamin E
a fat-soluble compound found principally in certain plant oils and the leaves of green vegetables. Wheat-germ oil is a particularly rich source of the vitamin. Vitamin E, first recognized in 1922, ...
vitamin D
any of a group of fat-soluble vitamins important in calcium metabolism in animals. It is formed by ultraviolet radiation (sunlight) of sterols present in the skin.vitamin C
water-soluble, carbohydrate-like substance that is involved in certain metabolic processes of animals. Although most animals can synthesize vitamin C, it is necessary in the diet of some, including ...
vitamin B12
a complex water-soluble organic compound that is essential to a number of microorganisms and animals, including humans. Vitamin B12 aids in the development of red blood cells in higher animals. The ...
vitamin B6
water-soluble organic compound that is an essential micronutrient for microorganisms and animals. It occurs in three forms: pyridoxine (or pyridoxol), pyridoxal, and pyridoxamine. Pyridoxine was ...
vitamin A
a fat-soluble alcohol, most abundant in fatty fish and especially in fish-liver oils. Vitamin A is also found in milk fat, eggs, and liver; synthetic vitamin A is added to margarine. Vitamin A is not ...
vitamin K
any of several fat-soluble naphthoquinone compounds. Vitamin K (from the Danish word koagulation) is required for the synthesis of several blood clotting factors, including prothrombin and factors ...
vitamin B complex
several vitamins that traditionally have been grouped together because of loose similarities in their properties, their distribution in natural sources, and their physiological functions, which ...
riboflavin
a yellow, water-soluble organic compound that occurs abundantly in whey (the watery part of milk) and in egg white. An essential nutrient for animals, it can be synthesized by green plants and by ...
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