Vitamin Chart from Food Sources

We all know that we should eat a balanced diet, but knowing and doing are different, right?  I've created a chart to help us on our quest to eat smarter. 

Link for PDF: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5sAozhsb8u-aUxaSjhwLVNqck0/edit?usp=sharing

Disclaimer: I'm no dietician, so I constructed my chart with limited knowledge and rudimentary research.  However, I found some common info at Medical News Today and Health-Alicious-Ness  that helped me choose which foods contained which vitamins; all of the foods listed above contain specific vitamins that we need to increase our well-being.  I listed common foods from which I can easily develop a weekly menu.  While researching I discovered the difference between water and fat soluble vitamins.  Water soluble vitamins are extracted frequently; thereby we need to consume these more often, and fat soluble vitamins remain in our system longer, stored in our... yep, you guessed it....our fat tissue! (Unfortunately, I don't think this means that if we carry extra fat we are healthier: bummer!)  Vitamins are best consumed through food sources, so no, you cannot simply take a multivitamin and proceed to eat chips and bean dip all day (sorry, honey).  Vegans might have a difficult time getting enough B12 so I've included a link with more information at The Vegetarian Resource Group. 

And why did I do all this?  After my latest check-up, the nurse called to tell me that my blood work indicated that I was low on vitamin D.  As I get older, I think more and more about how I need to eat better, not only to control my weight but also to increase vitality, energy, and longevity.  Psst: I didn't say I was OLD, just that I'm moving up on the number line, proof that I'm not kin to Benjamin Button.  I'm really young; I mean, if forty is the new thirty, and I'm not even forty yet, then I'm practically in my twenties! And since I act twenty-two, then I must be young because everyone says age is about how you act, feel, and think!  Thanks Taylor Swift, "I'm feeling twenty-two!" ;) Yet, I digress.

Anyway, I'm super excited about my upcoming menu for the upcoming school year.  Check back to see which combinations I use to build a plan chock-full of healthy nutrients, and follow along to see how my family improves on eating well. Hopefully you will join me. Take that, Vitamin D!

~Truly, Cinderella (the middle-class, thirty-something, working-mom Cinde, of course)

P.S. Comments are welcome.  If I missed something or I should add something to my chart, please let me know. Thanks!