We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission. B vitamins are a group of eight essential nutrients that play roles in many organs and bodily systems.
In this article, we explore the function of B vitamins in the body and some key dietary sources of each.
What Are B Vitamins?
They help the body convert food into energy (metabolism), create new blood cells, and maintain healthy skin cells, brain cells, and other body tissues.
Explore:
Robably Familiar With Vitamin B6 And B12, But Did You Know There Are Actually Eight B Vitamins?
These vitamins help a variety of enzymes do their jobs, ranging from releasing energy from carbohydrates and fat to breaking down amino acids and transporting oxygen and energy-containing nutrients around the body. It is also added to foods and sold as a supplement in the form of folic acid; this form is actually better absorbed than that from food sources—85% vs. 50%, respectively. Learn more about folate and health
Another line of research about folate and two other B vitamins, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12, explores their roles in reducing some types of cancer and heart disease.
Vitamin B6 Vitamin B6, or pyridoxine, is a water-soluble vitamin found naturally in many foods, as well as added to foods and supplements. It is also a key player in the function and development of brain and nerve cells. Learn more about vitamin B12 and health
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Thiamin (Vitamin B1)
The amount of thiamin adults (aged 19 to 64) need is: 1mg a day for men
0.8mg a day for women You should be able to get all the thiamin you need from your daily diet.
What Happens If I Take Too Much Thiamin?
There’s not enough evidence to know what the effects might be of taking high doses of thiamin supplements each day. Taking 100mg or less a day of thiamin supplements is unlikely to cause any harm.
Abstract
Scant regard has been paid to the other B vitamins.
This review describes the closely inter-related functions of the eight B-vitamins and marshals evidence suggesting that adequate levels of all members of this group of micronutrients are essential for optimal physiological and neurological functioning. Furthermore, evidence from human research clearly shows both that a significant proportion of the populations of developed countries suffer from deficiencies or insufficiencies in one or more of this group of vitamins, and that, in the absence of an optimal diet, administration of the entire B-vitamin group, rather than a small sub-set, at doses greatly in excess of the current governmental recommendations, would be a rational approach for preserving brain health.