Traditional herbal medicine, based on centuries of experience, is also called “monastic medicine” because it used to be v.a. the monasteries were the ones that preserved and expanded herbal medicine knowledge. The most well-known representative of monastic medicine is Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), who is generally considered to have founded European naturopathy. In addition to herbal products, minerals, trace elements, and essential fatty acids, v.aVitamins are also among the so-called “micronutrients” that are vital for the body.
The term "vitamins" encompasses a wide variety of organic compounds necessary for metabolism. Despite all their differences, vitamins have one thing in common: they do not produce energy, but rather serve very specific functions, such as acting as antioxidants to protect against free radicals. A vitamin deficiency can lead to illness even with a sufficient intake of energy-providing fats, proteins, and carbohydrates. With the exception of vitamin D, which the body can produce itself with the help of sunlight, all other vitamins must be obtained through food. There are both fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins, although only fat-soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, E, and K) can be stored in the body (the exception being the water-soluble vitamin B12).