A History of Modern Nutrition: When Did We Discover Micronutrients?

November 2, 2025 •

4 min read

Before the 20th century, scientists believed the essential elements in food consisted only of protein, fats, and carbohydrates. The groundbreaking realization that minuscule 'accessory factors' were vital for health reshaped nutritional science forever. This shift began the process of understanding precisely when did we discover micronutrients and led to the eradication of many deficiency diseases.

Quick Summary

The discovery of micronutrients was a gradual, multi-decade process starting with observations in the 18th and 19th centuries. Early clinical trials and animal studies identified essential substances, culminating in the coining of the term 'vitamine' in 1912. The early 20th century saw the isolation of most major vitamins and a parallel understanding of essential mineral roles, fundamentally changing nutritional science and public health approaches.

Key Points

18th-Century Observations: Early discoveries were empirical, based on observing that specific foods cured diseases like scurvy and beriberi, long before the causative agents were known.
Accessory Factors: The modern concept began with Frederick Gowland Hopkins's 1906 work on "accessory food factors," which showed that animals need more than just macronutrients to survive.
Coined the Term: In 1912, Casimir Funk introduced the term "vitamine," from "vital" and "amine," though the spelling was later changed when not all were found to be amines.
Rapid Discovery Era: Most major vitamins were identified and isolated chemically between 1910 and 1948, marking a period of intense nutritional research.
Minerals Understood Early: The importance of some minerals, like iron and iodine, was recognized and addressed through empirical means well before vitamins were formally discovered.
Public Health Impact: The understanding of micronutrients led to widespread food fortification campaigns, dramatically reducing common deficiency diseases in developed nations.

Early Clues and Empirical Remedies

Long before the formal discovery of micronutrients, humanity observed that specific foods could cure certain diseases. In 1747, Scottish naval surgeon James Lind conducted a clinical trial showing that citrus fruits cured scurvy among sailors. While he didn't know about vitamin C, his work provided empirical evidence that something in citrus was essential for health. Similarly, in the late 19th century, Dutch physician Christiaan Eijkman observed that chickens fed polished rice developed a paralytic condition similar to beriberi in humans. His accidental discovery in the Dutch East Indies proved that something in the rice husks was protective. For this work, Eijkman, along with Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins, received the 1929 Nobel Prize.

These findings challenged the prevailing early 19th-century view that food consisted only of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. During this same period, the essential role of certain minerals was also starting to emerge. Iron was used to treat anemia, and iodine was used for goiter, recognizing their importance well before the mechanisms were fully understood.

The Birth of the 'Vitamin' Concept

The intellectual leap from observing dietary links to positing an unseen, vital nutrient came in the early 20th century. In 1906, Frederick Gowland Hopkins demonstrated that rats could not survive on a purified diet of known nutrients but thrived with minute additions of milk. He termed these missing elements "accessory factors."

The term that would stick was coined in 1912 by Polish biochemist Casimir Funk. After isolating a water-soluble complex from rice bran, he proposed the “vitamine hypothesis,” suggesting that beriberi, scurvy, pellagra, and rickets were caused by deficiencies of specific substances. He named these compounds "vitamines" (vital amines), though the final "e" was dropped in 1920 by Jack Cecil Drummond after it was discovered not all were amines. Funk’s work is recognized as the starting point for modern vitamin research.

The Era of Vitamin Discovery (1910-1948)

Following Funk’s hypothesis, a rapid race to identify and isolate specific vitamins began, primarily through animal model studies. This period represents a key answer to when did we discover micronutrients. Scientists systematically isolated the various substances that were proven to cure specific deficiency diseases. The timeline of discovery shows a remarkable acceleration of knowledge.


Year	Vitamin	Key Figure(s)	Deficiency Disease Identified
1912-14	A	Elmer McCollum and Marguerite Davis	Xerophthalmia, Night Blindness
1912	B1 (Thiamine)	Casimir Funk	Beriberi
1922	D	Edward Mellanby	Rickets
1922	E	Herbert Evans and Katherine Bishop	Infertility in animals
1926	B2 (Riboflavin)	D. T. Smith, E. G. Hendrick	Poor growth, skin lesions
1928	C (Ascorbic Acid)	Albert Szent-Györgyi	Scurvy
1935	K	Henrik Dam	Poor blood clotting
1937	B3 (Niacin)	Conrad Elvehjem	Pellagra
1941	B9 (Folic Acid)	Mitchell et al.	Anemia, birth defects
1948	B12 (Cobalamin)	Riches, Folkers, et al.	Pernicious anemia

The Role of Minerals and Food Fortification

While the vitamins were being isolated, research also focused on the essential minerals. During the 19th century, iron, iodine, and zinc were recognized as important trace elements for health. The early 20th century saw decisive action based on this knowledge. By the 1920s, iodized salt was introduced to combat goiter in Switzerland and the U.S..

The widespread fortification of foods with both minerals and vitamins accelerated during and after World War II, driven by concerns over civilian and armed forces nutrition. Public health campaigns promoted milk fortified with Vitamin D and flour enriched with B vitamins and iron. This public health revolution dramatically reduced the incidence of major deficiency diseases in industrialized nations.

Conclusion: From Cures to Prevention

The discovery of micronutrients was not a singular event but a century-long, multi-disciplinary effort. It began with early observational evidence and empirical treatments in the 18th century, gained scientific footing with the recognition of 'accessory factors' in the early 20th century, and culminated in the identification and isolation of specific vitamins and minerals by the mid-20th century. This historical journey transformed nutrition from a simple study of energy and macronutrients into a complex science of essential dietary elements. It shifted the focus from merely curing diseases to preventing them through proper diet and public health measures, a legacy that continues to influence nutritional guidelines and fortification programs today.

For further reading on the fascinating history of nutritional discoveries, see the National Institutes of Health (NIH) article, "The Discovery of the Vitamins".

Comparison of Pre- and Post-Discovery Nutritional Approaches


Feature	Pre-Discovery Approach	Post-Discovery Approach
Scurvy Prevention	Empirical use of citrus fruits; mechanism unknown.	Administering or ensuring intake of vitamin C (ascorbic acid).
Beriberi Treatment	Consumption of unpolished rice; mechanism unknown.	Identification and intake of vitamin B1 (thiamine).
Nutritional Focus	Primarily focused on macronutrients (protein, fat, carbs) and energy intake.	Broadened to include specific vitamins and minerals essential in small amounts.
Public Health	Limited and often inconsistent, based on anecdotal evidence.	Widespread food fortification programs and dietary guidelines established.
Research Methods	Primarily observational, with some early clinical trials.	Systemic animal modeling, chemical isolation, and clinical trials.

List of Key Discoveries:

1747: James Lind performs a clinical trial demonstrating citrus cures scurvy.
Late 1800s: Christiaan Eijkman links unpolished rice to beriberi prevention.
1906: Frederick Gowland Hopkins proposes "accessory factors".
1912: Casimir Funk coins the term "vitamine".
1912-1948: The systematic discovery and isolation of major vitamins occurs.
1920s: Widespread use of iodized salt begins to address goiter.
1940s: Public health efforts ramp up food fortification in Western countries.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Polish biochemist Casimir Funk coined the term "vitamine" in 1912 after isolating a substance from rice husks that prevented beriberi.

In 1906, Hopkins showed that animals fed a purified diet failed to grow unless given small amounts of milk, proving the existence of 'accessory factors' and disproving the old theory that only macronutrients were needed.

Scottish naval surgeon James Lind conducted one of the first clinical trials in 1747, demonstrating that citrus fruits were a potent remedy for scurvy among sailors, though he did not know the substance responsible was vitamin C.

Christiaan Eijkman's work in the late 19th century showed that chickens fed polished rice developed a condition similar to beriberi, which was cured by adding the rice polishings back to their diet.

Widespread food fortification began in the late 1930s and accelerated during World War II in countries like the U.S. and Britain to prevent micronutrient deficiencies in the population.

While the function of some minerals like iron and iodine was understood and acted upon empirically before the concept of vitamins was formalized, the systematic identification of both essential minerals and vitamins occurred in parallel during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The 'e' was dropped from "vitamine" in 1920 by Jack Cecil Drummond because it was found that not all of these essential substances were amines (nitrogen-containing).