What is the difference between micronutrients and macronutrients? Here you can learn everything about micronutrients, vitamins, minerals, and trace elements.
Table of contents
1. What micronutrients are there?
Micronutrients include vitamins , trace elements , and minerals , as well as some fatty acids and amino acids. However, your body cannot produce many of these essential micronutrients itself.
They must be supplied daily from external sources. However, some micronutrients can be stored in the body or incorporated as building blocks . Chemically, the human body consists of approximately 95% carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen. The remaining 5% of body mass is made up of stored minerals .
Depending on their concentration in the body per 1 kg of body weight, minerals can be divided into major minerals and trace elements . If a mineral falls below the limit of 50 mg per 1 kg of body weight, it falls into the category of trace elements.
Micronutrient list
Major elements or minerals (>50 mg/1 kg body weight):
- Calcium
- chloride
- potassium
- magnesium
- sodium
- phosphorus
Trace elements (<50 mg/1 kg body weight):
- iron
- fluorine
- manganese
- chrome
- iodine
- copper
- selenium
- silicon
- zinc
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Vitamins:
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B1
- Vitamin B2
- Vitamin B3
- Vitamin B5
- Vitamin B6
- Vitamin B9
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin E
- Biotin
- Vitamin K
2. The function of micronutrients
Depending on which of these three subgroups the micronutrients fall into, they fulfill different functions within your body. Vitamins, for example, are involved in many basic metabolic processes.
Vitamin D, for example, contributes to normal calcium levels, the maintenance of normal bones, muscle function, teeth, the immune system, and cell division. Vitamins B5 and B12, on the other hand, reduce fatigue, and vitamins B1 and B6 support your energy metabolism.
Unlike vitamins, macro and trace elements act more as regulators or building blocks in our body . This is ultimately why they make up a certain portion of our body mass.
For example, calcium is stored in bones and teeth, while iron is found in red blood cells. As neurotransmitters, minerals are also involved in the transmission of nerve signals , among other things.
3. When you need micronutrients
If you eat a balanced diet and plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, you should generally get enough micronutrients . Caution is advised if you eat a plant-based diet exclusively.
Many trace elements and some B vitamins are present in much higher concentrations in animal foods than in plant sources. The bioavailability of animal products is often significantly better.
Minerals such as magnesium support, among other things, normal muscle function and energy metabolism [1]. It can also help reduce signs of fatigue [2].
However, if you sweat heavily during training, you lose a large portion of these valuable nutrients. In this case, it's especially important to counteract this with plenty of high-quality nutrients immediately after exercise to support your recovery.
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In fact, micronutrients not only help boost your physical performance: they can also support your mental performance .
Your mental fitness in old age will also benefit if you pay attention to your micronutrient balance early on. In addition to the nutrients already mentioned , B vitamins are particularly important for mental performance.
4. Buying micronutrients - What you need to pay attention to
If you want to buy micronutrients, you should definitely make sure they contain the highest possible dosage and come from natural sources . Another often underestimated purchasing criterion is bioavailability , i.e., the extent and speed with which a substance enters the bloodstream.
The problem: Many manufacturers of micronutrient supplements offer high-dose preparations, but then add magnesium salts and other unnecessary fillers to their products . Magnesium salts are known to significantly reduce the bioavailability of many micronutrients . When purchasing a new supplement, you should always make sure it doesn't contain such fillers.
If you follow a plant-based diet, you should also check whether pills and lozenges are explicitly labeled as vegan . If they aren't, the capsule shell is almost certainly made of gelatin.
If you want to get your extra dose of micronutrients from products that also contain other foods, it makes sense to carefully examine the other ingredients. Fitness foods or protein shakes with vitamins are also often not 100% vegan and sometimes contain unnecessary added sugar or allergens.
A practical and well-tolerated way to balance your individual micronutrient intake is a micronutrient blend . This is a fine granulate composed of all the necessary vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. These granules are usually derived from plant sources and can be easily purchased at any pharmacy.
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5. The difference between macronutrients and micronutrients
The prefix macro means "large," "long," or "in the big picture. " Micro , on the other hand, refers to "the small," "the fine," or sometimes "the lesser" or "the detailed." Accordingly, your body needs larger amounts of macronutrients , which serve as important energy sources .
Micronutrients, on the other hand, are considered vital nutrients: They don't provide the body with energy, but they are involved in many fundamental metabolic processes. These include many of the utilization and digestive processes that occur continuously in our organism. This makes them just as important for our survival as macronutrients.
6. Conclusion
Macronutrients and micronutrients differ primarily in their ability to provide the body with energy. Micronutrients don't provide this, but they are essential for many of our "smaller" metabolic processes . In addition to vitamins, trace elements and minerals also count as micronutrients.
Although you don't have to worry too much about a micronutrient deficiency if you eat a balanced diet, it can be worthwhile to take additional supplements, especially for vegans , pregnant women and high-performance athletes .
During strenuous and stressful times, you can support your body in staying on track by providing it with the right amount of vitamins, minerals, and trace elements.
7. Sources
[1] Chen HY; Cheng, F.C.; Pan, H.C.; Hsu, J.C.; Wang, MF (2014), Magnesium Enhances Exercise Performance via Increasing Glucose Availability in the Blood, Muscle and Brain during Exercise. PLoS One, Volume 9, Issue 1, p. 85486, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24465574 .
[2] Beard, J.L (2001), Iron Biology in Immune Function, Muscle Metabolism and Neuronal Functioning, The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 131, Issue 2, p. 568S–580S, https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/131/2/568S/4686826 .
