Vitamins and their significance

Vitamin is a term applied to a group of substances which exist in minute quantities in natural foods, and which are necessary to normal nutrition, especially in connection with growth and development. Vitamins are widely used for medical purposes; many of them are produced synthetically. Different kinds of vitamins are designated by letters of the Latin alphabet. There are several groups of vitamins. All of them are very necessary for the life of the organism.

Vitamin A is found in cod-liver oil, eggs, liver, milk, butter and most green vegetables. Deficiency of vitamin A is considered to be responsible for serious inflammation of the eyes, various skin eruption, defective development of the teeth.

Vitamin B is present in the seeds of grains. The best sources of this vitamin are believed to be flour, bacon, liver, eggs. Its deficiency may result in a form of neuritis with muscular weakness, heart failure, etc., which is known as beri-beri.

Vitamin C is available in fresh fruits, berries, green vegetables, milk, meat and other fresh foods. It is quickly destroyed by high temperature. The deficiency of vitamin C leads to scurvy.

Vitamin D is of special importance for the growth of children. Only a few foods contain vitamin D naturally, viz. cod-liver oil, caviar, egg yolk, fresh vegetables and milk to a greater or lesser degree.

Cod-liver oil is a product with a high vitamin D content. Vitamin D is manufactured in very large amounts at the plants. The deficiency of this vitamin in children may cause rickets. Since vitamin D is known to be preventive as well as curative for rickets the doctors often prescribe the course of vitamin D treatment.

A lack of vitamins in food or an insufficient amount of them results in a serious breakdown in the organism. Prolonged deficiency of any vitamin is sure to result in a disease known as avitaminosis, e.g. scurvy, beri-beri, rickets. Most avitaminoses are accompanied by reduced working capacity, rapid fatigue, a sharp decrease in the resistance of the organism to infection, incorrect development and retarded growth (in children), etc. To prevent avitaminoses infants should be daily given cod-liver oil and fresh fruit and vegetable juices.

Any person using a diet containing such foods as milk, eggs, butter, cheese, fat, fish,

bread, fresh vegetables and fruit obtains a sufficient amount of vitamins to be protected from avitaminoses.

Explanatory Notes:

viz. – videlicet = namely

etc. – et cetera = and so on; eg. – exempli gratia = for example

Active Words to remember:

Substance; connection; growth; development; kind; responsible; various; eruption; source; heart failure; a few; as well as; capacity; to reduce; fatigue; sharp; to obtain.

EXERCISES.

I. Translate the sentences. Pay attention to the Subjective Infinitive Construction.

1. Children’s diet early in life is thought to have profound effects on their brain development, muscular coordination and behaviour. 2. A course of combined treatment, including physiotherapy and hormones is certain to have given positive results in curing disorders of internal secretion glands. 3. Protoplasm is known to be a living substance and to have a cellular structure. 4. Rheumatic fever and acute nephritis are most likely to occur when the infecting organism is the haemolytic streptococcus. 5. In animals heparin has been shown to reduce the severity of lesions. 6. Rickets is believed to be largely, if not entirely, the result of a deficiency of vitamin D. 7. The reduced amount of oxygen in the blood of anemic patients is stated to be a major cause of the dysfunction of the heart, skeletal muscles and brain. 8. Rheumatoid arthritis is sure to be more complex as well as more frequent than other forms. 9. Codein is known to be an efficient pain killer as well as cough remedy. 10. The right lung has been proved to be more frequently affected by pneumonia than the left one. 11. The great Russian scientist I. Mechnikov is considered to be one of the founders of comparative embryology. 12. Anemia in some pregnant women is seen to be due to a deficiency in folic acid, one of the B vitamins. 13. A large cerebral cyst which was supposed to be the result of an old hemorrhage was in the left frontal lobe. 14. Smallpox is known to have been entirely eliminated in our country. 15. The most prominent function of blood is known to be carrying oxygen to the tissue. 16. The pain in the stomach is likely to persist after administration of atropin. 17. Generalized convulsions are stated to be followed by complete weakness of the patient’s body.

II. Translate the sentences. Pay attention to the subordinate clauses.

1. That prolonged deficiency of any vitamin results in avitaminosis is known to everybody nowadays. 2. Whether the bronchitis was primary or whether it was the complication after some disease should be cleared. 3. The fact is that grippe is dangerous for its complications. 4. That the microbes exist everywhere is a well-known fact. 5. The doctor’s opinion was that the appendix should be removed immediately. 6. That the fungi are capable of fermentation was spoken about at the last lecture. 7. The thing is that chemical structure of vitamins remained unknown for a long time. 8. The doctor’s supposition is that the sudden eruption on the skin of the patient was associated with the large dose of streptomycin. 9. That vitamins are of vast importance is well-known. 10. That sunshine is necessary nearly to all forms of plant life has been recognized for a very long time. 11. That sunshine has a definite influence on certain body tissues has been demonstrated with striking vividness.

III. Group the following nouns, adjectives and adverbs:

Nutrition, natural, different, connection, especially, growth, development, responsible, deficiency, serious, widely, various, defective, inflammation, eruption, naturally, weakness, available, special, importance, preventive, quickly, treatment, resistance.

IV. Give Russian equivalents of the following word-combinations:

In connection with; to be responsible for; minute quantities; skin eruptions; to be present in; to a greater or lesser degree, to result in, to be available in, cod-liver-oil; to be of importance; as well as; to be used for; a lack of vitamins; reduced working capacity; rapid fatigue; insufficient amount; retarded growth; a breakdown in the organism.

V. Form nouns adding the following suffixes to the given words, translate them into Russian:

(-ment, -th, -ence, -(t)ion, -sion, -ness, -ity)

Restless, treat, infect, resist, connect, responsible, exist, mortal, develop, grow, enlarge, erupt, disturb, prevent, ail, appear, contribute, anxious, congest, hoarse, occur, irritable, transmit.

VI. Form adjectives adding the following suffixes to the given words, translate them:

(-al, -ant, -ent, -ic, -ive, -ous)

Differ, vary, connect, infect, resist, system, result, prevent, experiment.

VII. Form adverbs adding ‘ly’ to the following adjectives, translate them:

Wide, natural, serious, necessary, easy, correct, particular, active, severe, sufficient, consequent, gradual, total, vital, constant.

VIII. Give the singular of the following words:

Teeth, feet, children, quantities, cavities, possibilities, varieties, foci, data, bacteria, bases, fungi, analyses, strata, bacilli, phenomena, cocci, avitaminoses.

IX. Find the word nearest in the meaning to the given one:

1. to continue: a) to last, b) to shorten, c) to terminate, d) to diminish.

2. to complete: a) to decrease, b) to delay, c) to check, d) to finish.

3. nowadays: a) whenever, b) any way, c) at present, d) by means of.

4. to care for: a) to watch, b) to take care of, c) to note, d) to train.

5. direction: a) incidence, b) institution, c) contribution, d) contraction.

6. immediately: a) gradually, b) regularly, c)at once, d) promptly.

7. available: a) obtainable, b) considerable, c)suitable, d) advisable.

8. to cause: a)to produce, b)to obtain, c) to reach, d) to require.

9. efficiently: a) largely, b) effectively, c) consequently, d) particularly.

10. to vary: a) to offer, b) to involve, c) to change, d) to include. :