Micronutrients are essential elements needed by life in small quantities.

They include microminerals and Vitamins. Microminerals or trace elements include at least iron, cobalt, chromium, copper, iodine, manganese, selenium, zinc, and molybdenum.

They are dietary minerals needed by the human body in very small quantities (generally less than 100mg/day) as opposed to macrominerals which are required in larger quantities.

Note that the use of the term "mineral" here is distinct from the usage in the geological sciences.

Vitamins are organic chemicals that a given living organism requires in trace quantities for good health, but which the organism cannot synthesize, and therefore must obtain from its diet..

For more information about the topic Micronutrient, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

Dietary mineral — Dietary minerals are the chemical elements required by living organisms. Appropriate intake levels of each dietary mineral must be sustained to ...  > read more

Essential nutrient — An essential nutrient is a nutrient required for normal body functioning that can not be synthesized by the body. Categories of essential nutrient ...  > read more

Malnutrition — Malnutrition is a general term for the medical condition caused by an improper or insufficient diet. It most often refers to undernutrition resulting ...  > read more

Nutrition and pregnancy — Nutrition and pregnancy refers to the nutrient intake, and dietary planning that is undertook before, during and after pregnancy. Not only have ...  > read more

Related Stories

Striking A Healthy Balance For The Elderly (April 13, 1999) — U-M study says the elderly consume recommended dietary allowances of iron, zinc and magnesium, but nutritional supplements and drugs can offset the balance of these ...  > read more

New Fertilizer Material Can Help Control Heavy Metal Content (October 17, 2006) — A new reference material developed by NIST can help the agriculture industry and state regulators monitor the concentrations of several potentially hazardous heavy metal contaminants in ...  > read more

Selenium Supplements May Not Be Needed, Study Suggests (April 7, 2008) — Selenium, an 'essential trace element' often included in multimineral supplements, may not be as important as once thought. Although this trace element is essential in the diet of humans, it seems ...  > read more

Boron Is Essential For The Growth Of Plants And Animals (February 28, 2008) — A research group has shown that boron, although only required in tiny doses, is essential for organogenesis in plants. Research on the biological role of boron (B), a chemical element described ...  > read more

Disease-Fighting Foods May Be Derived From Metal-Loving Plants (August 17, 2001) — Too much metal in the soil and you have a contaminated brownfield. Too little metal in the diet and you see disease and malnutrition. The solution to both problems may be metal-loving plants that ...  > read more

Search ScienceDaily

Name That Species