B Vitamins and Energy: Understanding Your Needs

Vitamins are micronutrients that your body must have in small but steady quantities for normal growth, function and health. As with most micronutrients, you must get B vitamins from the foods you eat or from diet supplements.

Types

• The B complex includes: thiamin (vitamin Bl), riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), folate (folic acid), vitamin B12 (cobalamin), pantothenic acid, and biotin.

Function

• B-complex vitamins work together, and have a key role in the extraction of energy from carbohydrates, fats, and protein.

Mechanism

• The B-complex vitamins act primarily as coenzymes; that is, they are necessary for the enzymes driving different reactions in the body to function properly.

Sources

• In addition to dietary supplements, you can find B vitamins in organ meats, pork, grains, legumes, milk products, liver, eggs, whole-grain foods, and green vegetables.

Deficiency

• B-vitamin deficiency can lead to fatigue, depression, lack of coordination, skin and GI disorders, anemia, beriberi, mental disorders, and irritability

Considerations

• B vitamins are water-soluble and less toxic than fat-soluble vitamins, but require food to be processed. High intakes of vitamins with little food intake can cause physiological imbalances.