MICRONUTRIENTS MINERALS

Everything FitChef knows about micronutrients minerals.

The machinery beneath your macros that nobody checks.

The synthesis

This is where it all comes together. One guide. Built from 6 verified claims. Backed by 6 analyzed studies.

The Definitive Guide

Six Mineral Supplements Tested. One Rule Predicted Every Result.

Individual mineral supplements fix deficiencies. Daily multivitamins containing those same minerals do nothing. The contradiction has a name — and it changes every supplement decision you make.

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Myths we killed 5

ZMA boosts testosterone by 33.5%

Normal blood work means you're not iron deficient

Premium magnesium forms (glycinate, threonate) are proven sleep formulas

Your daily multivitamin covers your bases

Vitamin D supplements build muscle

6 studies 6 claims Triple-verified

built from

What the evidence says

We don't make claims. The studies do. We review them. 6 verified claims on micronutrients minerals — each one traced back to the papers below.

Do Multivitamins Actually Do Anything for Your Body? Researchers pooled 19 large-scale studies with over 5.5 million people and checked whether daily multivitamins improve any health outcome. For healthy adults who eat reasonably well, the answer… 2:50 · 4 studies

Is Low Iron Killing Your Training? Running low on iron doesn't just make you tired — it measurably slows you down. Four independent analyses covering over 2,400 athletes found that low iron stores reduce… 3:10 · 4 studies

Does Zinc Boost Testosterone — and Is ZMA Worth It? Zinc matters for testosterone — but only if you're running low on it. Across 38 studies, researchers found that low zinc reliably meant low testosterone, and fixing the… 2:39 · 5 studies

Does Vitamin D Make You Stronger? Researchers pooled 10 trials covering 354 athletes and found that vitamin D pills raised blood levels dramatically but didn't make them measurably stronger overall. The one exception was… 3:03 · 4 studies

How Much Does Magnesium Really Help Your Sleep? Most people think magnesium is a proven sleep supplement. The actual research behind that claim comes from three small studies with 151 people, all over 55, all with… 3:10 · 2 studies

Can Magnesium Reduce Muscle Soreness After Training? Researchers searched through over 1,200 studies on magnesium and soreness, but only 4 met their quality standards. All 4 found that taking magnesium supplements (350–500mg daily) helped reduce… 2:51 · 2 studies

backed by

The papers we actually read

Every claim above traces back to a peer-reviewed paper. No shortcuts. No cherry-picking. 6 studies analyzed on micronutrients minerals.

4 Studies Tested Magnesium for Soreness. All 4 Said Yes. All 4 included studies reported magnesium reduced muscle soreness or protected against muscle damage (100% agreement, n=73) Reno 2022: significant… Tarsitano et al. · 2024 · Journal of Translational Medicine · n=73

Magnesium Cut 17 Min Off Falling Asleep. The Catch. {"primary": "Sleep onset latency: \u221217.36 minutes (p=0.0006, significant, GRADE Low)", "secondary": "Total sleep time: +16.06 minutes (p=0.15, not significant, GRADE… Mah et al. · 2021 · BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies · n=151

Your Blood Says Vitamin D Works. Your Muscles Disagree. Vitamin D supplements raised blood levels dramatically across ten trials of 354 athletes — but three of four strength tests… Han et al. · 2024 · Frontiers in Nutrition · n=354

Does ZMA Work? Inside the One Study That Said Yes The only study claiming ZMA boosts testosterone was funded by the patent holder. Two independent replications found zero effect. Zinc… Te et al. · 2023 · Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology · n=38

Is Your Multivitamin Doing Anything? 19 Studies Checked. Controlled experiments found zero benefit for mortality, cancer, heart disease, immunity, or brain function. The one non-zero result — eye… Wang et al. · 2025 · Ageing Research Reviews · n=5,535,426

The Iron Dose Most Female Athletes Get Wrong Iron-deficient female athletes lost 1–19% of their endurance performance. Supplementation at 100+ mg/day improved time-to-exhaustion by approximately 20%. Below that… M et al. · 2024 · Journal of Sport and Health Science · n=669

6 studies → 6 verified claims → 1 flagship guides → 0 quick reads. Every link traceable. Every source cited.

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