Minerals by themselves are inactive chemical elements, like the iron in a pan or calcium in a rock. But in the body, calcium is used to make your skeleton and teeth, and iron is used to make the hemoglobin in red blood cells. The body uses this iron to carry oxygen to its cells. Minerals help maintain acid-base balance, to keep our body pH neutral. Minerals help regulate body processes, such as in enzyme systems.
Minerals function in nerve impulse transmission and muscle contraction.
Minerals help release energy from food. In the body, they work to maintain water balance and provide the correct pressure between cells and their surrounding fluids. Sodium and chloride are the major electrolytes in the fluid that surrounds body cells. Potassium is the primary electrolyte within body cells. Table salt is the most common food that contains both chloride and sodium.