MINERALS FOR BEAUTY

”A healthy body irradiates glowing beauty ,and good nutrition builds good health.”These themes have always been my emphasis.In parts One and Two of this series,you have read about two groups of micronutrients-water soluble and oil soluble vitamins.Let us now turn to the third micronutrient group:the minerals.There are about one hundread chemical elements that form numerous kinds of minerals of the earth;predictably many of these elements also exit in our bodies.However,only ninteen of them have been shown to be required for proper functioning of the higher animals ,including human beings.We will focus on calcium and iron in the issue,because they are the most important ones to the singaporeans.

CALCIUM
As the most abundant mineral in the body,calcium is the basic structural element of bones and teeth and contributes to the structural strength.More crucial functions of calcium are performed by a very small fraction,less than 1% of the body’s calcium,that is distributed throughout the body,in all kinds of soft tissues;blood ,muscles,nerve cells,and others.In the bones,crystals of calcium phosphate are meticulously constructed by the bone cells and filled into the space between collagen fibers,which are microstrands of rope-like protien made by the body.In this manner,a piece of bone somewhat resembles a piece of steel bar-reinforced concrete.so that they are light yet strong.In the teeth the structure is similer to that of the bones,except the enamel layer,which is the very hard cover of the teeth and has a different structure.Most of the structures of the bones and teeth are not dead,the calcium phosphate crystals and collagen fibers are,at all the times,subject to degradation and removal,or,in the opp. direction,are subject to addition of these materials.Thus the bones,and to a lesser degree.the teeth are subject to ‘remodelin’ all the time.The removal of calcium from the bones is called ‘calcium resorption’. When the dietary supply of calcium is inadequate,calcium is resorbed from the bones and is distributed to the soft tissues ,where a very narrow range of calcium concentration must be maintained in order to enable the body to function properly.In a sense this is a built-in protective measure of the body. The weakened teeth are more likely to decay and/or subject to other dental diseases,which can undermine an attractive and lovely smile. The bones are particularly subject to deformation,if this calcium deficiency induced down-grade remodeling continues for years.The disfiguaration would certainly destroy the beauty of a healthy body.Luckily under most circumstance,such a dire consequence does not occur.Rather,another bone disease,osteoporosis ,is the common consequence;the inflicted persons,may experience severe bonepains and fractures of the bones.