As is well known, vegetables, especially colored vegetables, are rich in vitamins and are one of the main sources of vitamins needed by the human body. In daily life, when people don't eat many vegetables, they often supplement their nutrition by taking vitamin supplements. Many others believe that since vegetables are rich in vitamins, there is no need to take supplements as long as they consume enough vegetables. Dr. Wang Xiaoxi from the Department of Nutrition at Xiangya Hospital believes that both of these views are one-sided, because vegetables and vitamin supplements cannot replace each other.
On the one hand, vitamin supplements cannot replace vegetables. This is because the vitamins in vegetables are natural components present in a certain proportion, whereas most vitamin supplements are synthetically produced, making them different in nature. Vegetables are a collection of various vitamins, while vitamin supplements are usually single-type. Although vegetables contain other substances that are not vitamins, they have similar effects on the human body, such as bioflavonoids and chlorophyll, so vegetables have a more comprehensive effect on health. Of course, vegetables also contain non-vitamin nutrients such as minerals, trace elements, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber, making their nutritional profile more complete. Therefore, it is almost impossible to replace vegetables with vitamin supplements. When vegetable intake is low, taking Vitamin C or other vitamins is merely a temporary measure. For obtaining comprehensive and balanced nutrition, eating vegetables and fruits is far more important than taking vitamin supplements.
On the other hand, vegetables cannot replace vitamin supplements. This is because: first, not all vegetables are rich in Vitamin C. Unless you carefully select green, red, and purple vegetables and fruits, it is difficult to meet the daily requirement of 100mg of Vitamin C. Second, Vitamin C is water-soluble, so it is easily lost during washing. Vitamin C is also sensitive to high temperatures; if the cooking temperature is too high or the heating time is too long, such as in stewing or clay pot cooking, a large amount of Vitamin C in the vegetables will be destroyed. Furthermore, Vitamin C is easily oxidized by oxygen in the air; the longer vegetables and fruits are stored, the more Vitamin C is lost. Therefore, unless the correct cooking methods are used, it is difficult to meet the body's daily needs even if the aforementioned colored vegetables are selected. Thus, in addition to relying on food, a moderate intake of vitamin supplements has certain health benefits.