Vitamins vs. Minerals: What's the Difference?
Read the comparison below, or explore it visually. Create a visual lesson comparing vitamins and minerals using available credits or plan allowance.
Vitamins are organic compounds made by plants, animals or microbes, while minerals are inorganic chemical elements, such as iron and calcium, that come originally from rocks, soil and water. Both are needed in small amounts, but vitamins can be broken down by heat, light or air during cooking and storage, whereas minerals are elements and cannot be destroyed, only lost into cooking water.
At a glance
| Vitamins | Minerals | |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical nature | Organic compounds containing carbon | Inorganic elements such as iron and zinc |
| Origin | Made by plants, animals and microbes | Absorbed by plants from soil and water |
| Number needed | 13 essential vitamins | Around a dozen or more essential minerals |
| Groups | Fat-soluble (A, D, E, K) and water-soluble | Major (e.g. calcium) and trace (e.g. iodine) |
| Effect of cooking | Some destroyed by heat, light or air | Not destroyed, but can leach into water |
Which should you use?
Vitamins matter when a diet lacks fresh foods; for example, vitamin C deficiency causes scurvy and vitamin A deficiency can cause night blindness.
Minerals matter where soil or diets lack specific elements; India adds iodine to salt to prevent goitre, and iron deficiency is a common cause of anaemia.