Nutrient deficiencies

Understand that a food can provide what is lacking

Scurvy is a major example of a disease linked to a deficiency: a prolonged lack of vitamin C disrupts connective tissues and healing in particular. Observation of the protective effect of fruits and vegetables, particularly during long sea voyages, preceded the precise identification of this vitamin. A dietary intake could therefore treat a problem that other treatments did not resolve.

Moving from visible lack to nutritional needs

Knowledge of vitamins and minerals has made it possible to define intake benchmarks and identify populations at risk. These references are used to cover needs, but do not constitute a competition for the highest figure. They have also made targeted prevention possible, thanks to fortified foods and supplements when a diet or situation is not enough.

When correction becomes an aesthetic promise

Supplements are today also presented as products for beauty, energy or performance. Biotin illustrates this gap: a true deficiency can affect hair and skin, but this does not demonstrate the effectiveness of megadoses in a person who is not deficient. The objective remains to correct a real nutritional limit, then to evaluate the result.