The Vitamins
Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health
- 7th Edition - November 1, 2026
- Latest edition
- Authors: Gerald F. Combs Jr., James P. McClung
- Language: English
The Vitamins: Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health, Seventh Edition presents both overviews and in-depth discussions of the sources, chemistry, metabolism and functi… Read more
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Description
Description
The Vitamins: Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health, Seventh Edition presents both overviews and in-depth discussions of the sources, chemistry, metabolism and functions of these essential nutrients in physiology and health. Originally written 35 years ago as an upper-level collegiate text, The Vitamins, through its several revised editions, has become the leading recognized comprehensive reference in the fields of nutrition and food science. The seventh edition supports advanced instruction by providing detailed metabolic insights and key research findings that have shaped our understanding of these essential nutrients in human and animal health.
Building upon previous editions, readers will gain updated insights into recent clinical research on all vitamins, with particular focus on vitamins A, D, E, K, C, thiamin, folate, and B12. The book also covers the latest findings on nutritional deficiencies, ecological strategies for addressing them, and vitamin–drug interactions. A revised table of deficiency signs in humans and animals is included, along with updated perspectives on the gut microbiome’s role in vitamin synthesis and metabolism. Expanded coverage highlights vitamins as supplements and examines their stability in foods, including losses during processing and cooking. Each chapter concludes with case studies, a quiz, and recommended readings.
Building upon previous editions, readers will gain updated insights into recent clinical research on all vitamins, with particular focus on vitamins A, D, E, K, C, thiamin, folate, and B12. The book also covers the latest findings on nutritional deficiencies, ecological strategies for addressing them, and vitamin–drug interactions. A revised table of deficiency signs in humans and animals is included, along with updated perspectives on the gut microbiome’s role in vitamin synthesis and metabolism. Expanded coverage highlights vitamins as supplements and examines their stability in foods, including losses during processing and cooking. Each chapter concludes with case studies, a quiz, and recommended readings.
Key features
Key features
• Presents complete information about the vitamins in a format useful as both a teaching text and desk reference
• Highlights added expressions of food vitamin contents on per serving bases in chapter tables of food sources and updated vitamin labeling per FDA regulations
• Provides updated information on the roles of the gut microbiome in vitamin synthesis and metabolism
• Contains enhanced appendices of key reference information including a new Key Vitamin Information Table and updated questions to examine vitamin knowledge
• Highlights added expressions of food vitamin contents on per serving bases in chapter tables of food sources and updated vitamin labeling per FDA regulations
• Provides updated information on the roles of the gut microbiome in vitamin synthesis and metabolism
• Contains enhanced appendices of key reference information including a new Key Vitamin Information Table and updated questions to examine vitamin knowledge
Readership
Readership
Upper-level undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate students studying micronutrients in nutrition programs; researchers in nutrition, food science, pharmacology, endocrinology, public health, and epidemiology; veterinarians. Clinicians, dietitians, and manufacturers of dietary supplements
Table of contents
Table of contents
Preface
Using this book
A. Perspectives on the Vitamins in Nutrition
1. What is a vitamin?
2. Discovery of the vitamins
3. Properties of Vitamins
4. Vitamin deficiency
B. Considering the Individual Vitamins
5. Vitamin A
6. Vitamin D
7. Vitamin E
8. Vitamin K
9. Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)
10. Thiamin (Vitamin B{sub|1})
11. Riboflavin
12. Niacin (vitamin B{sub|3})
13. Pyridoxine (Vitamin B{sub|6})
14. Biotin
15. Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B{sub|5})
16. Folate
17. Vitamin B12
18. Vitamin-Like Nutrients
C. Using Current Knowledge of the Vitamins
19. Sources of the vitamins
20. Assessing vitamin status
21. Vitamin needs
22. Vitamin safety
Appendices
Appendix A - Current and Obsolete Designations of Vitamins and Vitamin-Like Factors
Appendix B – Original Reports Used for Case Studies
Appendix C - A Core of Current Vitamin Literature
Appendix D – Vitamin Contents of Foods
Appendix E – Vitamin Contents of Feedstuffs
Appendix F - 20 Questions to Examine Vitamin Knowledge
Using this book
A. Perspectives on the Vitamins in Nutrition
1. What is a vitamin?
2. Discovery of the vitamins
3. Properties of Vitamins
4. Vitamin deficiency
B. Considering the Individual Vitamins
5. Vitamin A
6. Vitamin D
7. Vitamin E
8. Vitamin K
9. Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)
10. Thiamin (Vitamin B{sub|1})
11. Riboflavin
12. Niacin (vitamin B{sub|3})
13. Pyridoxine (Vitamin B{sub|6})
14. Biotin
15. Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B{sub|5})
16. Folate
17. Vitamin B12
18. Vitamin-Like Nutrients
C. Using Current Knowledge of the Vitamins
19. Sources of the vitamins
20. Assessing vitamin status
21. Vitamin needs
22. Vitamin safety
Appendices
Appendix A - Current and Obsolete Designations of Vitamins and Vitamin-Like Factors
Appendix B – Original Reports Used for Case Studies
Appendix C - A Core of Current Vitamin Literature
Appendix D – Vitamin Contents of Foods
Appendix E – Vitamin Contents of Feedstuffs
Appendix F - 20 Questions to Examine Vitamin Knowledge
Product details
Product details
- Edition: 7
- Latest edition
- Published: November 1, 2026
- Language: English
About the authors
About the authors
GC
Gerald F. Combs Jr.
Gerald F. Combs, Jr. is an internationally recognized leader in nutrition, particularly in the areas of micronutrient functions, diet and cancer prevention, and sustainable food systems. He has conducted research ranging from fundamental studies with cultured cells and animal models to human metabolic and clinical investigations, including studies in China, Bangladesh, Costa Rica and Malawi. He has lectured in some 30 countries and published more than 350 scientific papers and reviews, and 15 books, including six editions of The Vitamins: Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health. He received his graduate training in nutritional biochemistry at Cornell University, where he later served on that faculty for 29 years before being named Director of the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks ND from 2020-2015. He was is a Senior Scientist at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, 2015-2022. He presently is Professor Emeritus, Div. Nutritional Sciences, at Cornell University.
Affiliations and expertise
Professor, Nutrition Emeritus, Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USAJM
James P. McClung
James P. McClung completed his B.S. and M.S. degrees at the University of New Hampshire, and his doctoral degree at Cornell University. He completed a National Research Council post-doctoral fellowship prior to assuming a career in Nutrition Science with the Department of Defense. Dr. McClung’s research has focused on micronutrient nutrition at both the basic and applied levels and has led to the fielding of applied solutions for the optimization of human health and performance. He is an active member of a number of professional societies, including the American Society for Nutrition. He has authored or co-authored over 100 peer reviewed manuscripts, technical reports, and book chapters, and has served on the editorial boards of a number of leading international nutrition journals. Dr. McClung has co-authored the two most recent editions of The Vitamins: Fundamental Aspects in Nutrition and Health.
Affiliations and expertise
Nutritional biochemist, Westborough, Massachusetts, USA