A Bit About B…

Food truly is medicine –

My friend’s son has a rare genetic disease called TANGO2 Deficiency Disorder (TDD). TDD presents with a variety of issues including mental disability, motor impairment, metabolic crisis, and cardiac issues. Because of its rarity and variety of characteristics, it often goes undiagnosed until a metabolic crisis lands the child in the ER. Recently, it was observed that supplementation with certain B vitamins improved the outcome of crisis situations, averted crisis altogether, and improved overall health of the TDD patients. Just by adding B vitamins, these TDD children showed improvements in balance, energy levels, mental and physical abilities, and verbal skills, plus many experienced a reduction or elimination of seizures. This is amazing! The simple addition of vitamins has literally changed the lives of these children! 

This got me thinking about the function of B vitamins in our bodies and how critical they are to optimum health for not just the TDD children, but for everyone. What are these vitamins? What functions do they perform? And how can we supply our bodies with more of these critical nutrients? The answers are in this brief summary of these powerful micronutrients.

What are these vitamins?

First of all, there are 8 B vitamins. Some typically go by their numerical name and others by their compound name. The numerical order is the order in which they were discovered. These powerhouse vitamins are:

• B1 – Thiamine
• B2 – Riboflavin 
• B3 – Niacin 
• B5 – Pantothenic acid, 
• B6 – Pyridoxine  
• B7 – Biotin 
• B9 – Folate 
• B12 – Cobalamin 

(What happened to 4, 8, 10, and 11? They were actually discovered and named, but subsequently determined to no longer fit the definition of vitamin, so they were removed from the B vitamin complex) 

The discovery of B vitamins began in 1889 with research into beriberi, a disease that plagued southern Asia. When these scientists found that diet was related to beriberi, the groundbreaking theory that nutrition held the key to curing some diseases was born. The concept of vitamins – a contraction of vital and amine or vital to life – was then developed. First, thiamin was discovered as the vital nutrient that cures beriberi and labeled B1. Gradually, a series of B vitamins were discovered and numbered sequentially. Although their impacts are still not fully understood, there are several diseases and conditions linked to insufficient levels of these micronutrients. 

Deficiency in B vitamins can result in several diseases and conditions including: 

• Beriberi (thiamine deficiency) manifests as weakness, pain, partial paralysis, weight loss, confusion, and even death.
• Riboflavin deficiency can cause rashes, corners of the mouth cracks, mouth and tongue inflammation, and anemia, and impact growth
• Pellagra (niacin deficiency) affects the skin, mouth, bowels, and brain. It can damage the nervous system and result in death.
• Pantothenic acid deficiency can cause malaise, weakness, irritability, restlessness, nausea, numbness, and sleep issues.
• Vitamin B6 deficiency can cause anemia, rashes, confusion, seizures, and depression.
• Biotin deficiency can result in rashes, pink eye, hair loss, and nervous system issues.
• Folate deficiency can cause weakness, difficulty concentrating, irritability, headaches, heart palpitations, and shortness of breath.
• Vitamin B12 deficiency may cause anemia, fatigue, weakness, pallor, heart palpitations, and weight loss.

How much of these vitamins do you need?

Recommended dietary allowances (RDA) of B vitamins have been established by the US Food and Nutrition Board to meet the needs of most healthy people. The RDA for each of the B vitamins is listed below for adult males and females. Note that the RDAs for children and lactating or pregnant women may be different from the listed levels.

Vitamin	Adult Female RDA	Adult Male RDA
B1	1.1 mg	1.2 mg
B2	1.1 mg	1.3 mg
B3	14 mg	16 mg
B5	5 mg	5 mg
B6*	1.3 mg – 1.7 mg	1.3 mg – 1.5 mg
B7	25  µg	30 µg
B9	400 µg	400 µg
B12	2.4 µg	2.4 µg

*The RDA for vitamin B6 varies with age: 1.3 mg for adult males and females aged 19–50, and 1.5 mg for adult males aged 51 and older, and 1.7 mg for adult females aged 51 and older 

But…

The RDAs are more than enough to prevent deficiency, however, they may not be sufficient to promote vitality. Although you may be getting enough B vitamins to avoid these ailments, you may not be getting enough to optimize your health. There is a wide range between deficiency and optimal levels. In fact, many people live with suboptimal levels of B vitamins. B vitamins act as coenzymes without which the body wouldn’t be able to carry out a range of cellular functions. Increasing your daily dose of B vitamins may support better cellular function and support overall wellness. 

Consider all of the functions requiring B Vitamins 

• metabolism 
• DNA and RNA production 
• immunity
• healthy brain functions 
• new blood cell creation 
• mood regulation
• skin conditions 
• reducing birth defects 
• preventing cancer

These vitamins are critical to human health regardless of whether you have a disease, although they are showing promise in helping not only TDD, but also Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and cardiovascular issues.

So where can we get these powerhouse nutrients?

With the exception of B-12, you can get plenty of B vitamins in fruits, veggies, legumes, and seeds. (Current data indicates that B-12 is only available in animal products and some algae so it is advisable for vegetarians and especially vegans to supplement).

Green leafy vegetables high in B vitamins include spinach, kale, collard greens, and turnip greens. In addition to these whole food sources, many breakfast cereals are fortified with B vitamins. 

Plant foods to the rescue!

Be sure to include a variety of these great fruits, vegetables, legumes, and grains in your diet. If you cannot get enough of these sources of B vitamins, consider a high quality supplement. Supplements are available in a B complex, B6 and B12 complex, or as individual B vitamins. Recent studies indicate that most people (not just vegetarians and vegans) do not get enough B12 in their diets and can benefit from a B12 supplement. In fact, many elderly people are deficient in B12. Note that B vitamins are water soluble, so they don’t hang around in the body for long which means you need to eat them every day.

A brief word of caution:

Although B vitamins are water soluble and toxicity is not typically an issue, vitamin B6 is an exception. Supplementing with very high levels of vitamin B6 may be harmful. Toxic effects have been noted at doses exceeding 500 mg per day which is nearly 300 times the RDA and much higher than typically available in vitamin B complex supplements. You can read more about this in the Resources section.

🥑 For an easy way to add B vitamins to your day, check out my B Vitamin-Packed Smoothie recipe.