Macrominerals and their biological role

 

MINERALS

 

Minerals are inorganic chemical elements that the body needs for healthy growth and metabolism.They are also involved in making hormones and enzymes. Minerals are just as important as vitamins, and in fact work in conjunction with vitamins to perform many bodily functions such as bone formation, heart function and digestion.

Many minerals are brought into the food chain of plants and animals through the soil, and the mineral content of soil varies from region to region, often leached out through poor farming methods. Some experts believe that the soil in many agricultural areas is so depleted of vital minerals that supplements are now necessary to ensure the body gets an adequate supply of some of these essential elements.

The distinction between a mineral and a trace element is the daily amount that your body needs. If you need over 100 mg of a particular element it is considered a mineral or macro-mineral. Anything less and it is considered a trace element.

Biogenic elements

The Biogenic Elements: The Chemical Elements Essential To Earth’s Living Systems

Almost every one of the chemical elements plays some role in Earth’s living systems, however, ~20 elements account for the vast majority of material in living systems. These biogenic elements are divided into …
→ six major biogenic elements (elements found in almost all of Earth’s living systems, often in relatively large quantities),

→ five minor biogenic elements (elements found in many of Earth’s living systems, and/or in relatively small quantities),

→ trace elements (essential elements necessary only in very small quantities to maintain the chemical reactions on which life depends. 

Classification of chemical elements

GENERAL:

•All matter in the Universe occurs in the form of atoms of a small number of elements.

An atom is the fundamental unit of an element. For each element, it consists of a unique (fixed) number of positively charged protons in a central nucleus – the atomic number for that element – surrounded by a cloud of an equal number of negatively charged electrons. There are 92 naturally occurring chemical elements in the Universe. All substances in the Universe are formed through chemical reactions among combinations of atoms of these elements.

Structure of matter

What is the World Made of ?
Why do so many things in this world share the same characteristics?
People have come to realize that the matter of the world is made from a few fundamental building blocks of nature.
The word “fundamental” is key here. By fundamental building blocks we mean objects that are simple and structureless – not made of anything smaller.
Even in ancient times, people sought to organize the world around them into fundamental elements, such as earth, air, fire, and water.