B Complex Vitamins

I would like to start the article by saying just how important B Complex Vitamins are also for treating some very serious conditions. This remarkable family of vitamins works together as a team to support the entire nervous system.

The B Complex family of vitamins includes:

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)
Coenzyme in the metabolism of carbohydrates and branched-chain amino acids
Vitamin B2 (Riboflamin)
Conezyme in numerous redox reactions
Vitamin B3 (Niacin and Niacinamide)
Coenzyme or cosubstrate in many biological reduction and oxidation reactions - thus required for energy metabolism
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)
Conezyme in fatty acid metabolism
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)
Coenzyme in the metabolism of amino acids, glycogen and sphingoid bases
Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin)
Coenzyme in nucleic acid metabolism; prevents megaloblastic anemia
Folic Acid (Folate)
Coenzyme in the metabolism of nucleic and amino acids; prevents megaloblastic anemia
Biotin
Coenzyme in synthesis of fat, glysogen and amino acids
Choline
Precursor for acetylcholine phospholipids and betaine
Inositol
Para-amino Benzoic Acid (PABA)

Each B-Complex Vitamin has a fundamentally different function and a very distinct chemical structure from the others which we are not going to talk about, because we are mostly interested in benefits rather than chemical structure of B Vitamins.

Our bodies need them all, each in the proper amount and the right balance to stay healthy. When people are deficient of B Vitamins, they are almost never deficient in just one of them.

Since our bodies need them all together as a team, it is important to take a Vitamin B Complex Supplements when taking additional amounts of any single B Vitamin.

What are B Vitamins?

A group of nutrients that are essential to the proper functioning of your blood and entire immune system. They are necessary for the transformation of food into usable energy, proper nervous system function and good heart health and many more.

Who should take B Complex Vitamins ?

Probably everybody! If we eat a lot of processed food, drink a lot of alcohol, take certain medications, are on a strict wiight-loss diet, you probably do not have sufficient amounts of B Vitamins (one or more) in your body.

By definition, vitamins are nutrients that can not be produced by your body (maybe some of them in really small amounts) it is absolutely necessary to consume them on a daily basis.

You should take whole food-based B-complex vitamins with breakfast and lunch. B vitamins are commonly lost with stress and the use of diuretics as well as with carbohydrate consumption. Taking late in the day may overenergize and possibly interfere with sleep.

Natural Made Super B Complex

You can easily add extra B-Complex Vitamins via using nutritional yeast as a condiment (it yields a cheesy, nutty flavour).

Vitamin B Complex Benefits

Supports Depression and Anxiety

Helps to treat patients with high cholesterol, heart disease, headaches, poor immune function, anemia, cold sores and genital herpes.

Some B Vitamins, such as Vitamin b5 (Pantothenic acid) and Vitamin b& (Pyridoxine) act as antioxidants, free-radical scavengers, and protect your cell membranes and DNA from damage.

Necessary for the transformation of food into usable energy, proper nervous system function and good heart health and many more.

Vitamin B Foods

You can find B Complex Vitamins in many different types of foods. Usually they are grouped together in combinations.

Biotin (Liver and smaller amounts in fruits and meats)
Choline (Milk, liver, egges, peanuts)
Folate (Enriched cereal grains, dark leafy vegetables, enriched and whole-grain breads and bread products, fortified ready-to-eat cereals)
Niacin (Meat, fish, poultry, enriched and whole-grain breads and bread products, fortified ready-to-eat cereals)
Pantothenic Acid (Chicken, beef, potatoes, oats, cereals, tomato products, liver, kidney, yeast, egg, yolk, broccoli, whole grains)
Riboflavin (Organ meats, milk, bread products and fortified cereals)
Thiamin (Enriched, fortified or whole-grain products, bread and bread products, mixed food whose main ingredient is grain and ready-to-eat cereals)
Vitamin B6 (Fortified cereals, organ meats, fortified soy-based meat substitutes)
Vitamin B12 (Fortified cereals, meat, fish, poultry)

How much is enough?

Probably up to three times or more RDA (Recommended Daily Allowances) as according to my experience RDA is good only for maintaining the minimum amounts necessary to avoid diseases of vitamin deficienty such as pellagra (Niacin deficiency) and beriberi (thiamine deficiency).

Equalized B-Complex capsule structure would look something like this:

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)...................100 mg
Vitamin B2 (Riboflamin).................100 mg
Vitamin B3 (Niacin and Niacinamide).....100 mg
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)...........100 mg
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine).................100 mg
Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin)................100 mcg
Folic Acid (Folate).......................1 mg
Biotin..................................100 mcg
Choline.................................100 mcg

But what combination of B Complex Vitamins is the best for each individual? We are all different, we all live different lives, our bodies react differently in different situations. However, for major part of population 'Balanced' B-Complex Vitamins should be fine.

'Balanced' - natural ratio of B Complex Vitamins.

Dietary Reference Intakes (according to the Office of Dietary Supplements, National Insitutes of Health)*:

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)......................1.2 mg
Vitamin B2 (Riboflamin)....................1.2 mg
Vitamin B3 (Niacin and Niacinamide).........15 mg
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)................5 mg
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)....................1.3 mg
Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin)...................2.5 mcg
Folic Acid (Folate).......................400 mcg
Biotin.....................................30 mcg
Choline...................................450 mcg

*Note that all the above daily recommended intakes are averages of different life stage groups

All this data should only be used for informational purposes, because in every B Complex Supplement that you can get on-line or in the local supermarket, you will probably get similar distribution of each vitamin at the team of B Complex Vitamins.

Personal experience with B Complex Vitamins

I usually mix one teaspoon of nutritional yeast into my fruit shake every morning. Also I take one or two capsules of B Complex Vitamins at breakfast and at lunch, which totally satisfies my daily needs for B Complex Vitamins team.

Related articles

1)

References and Footnotes:

1) Primal body, primal mind, Nora T. Gedgaudas, CNS, CNT, 2009.
2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_vitamins
3) Basic Health Publications user's guide to the B-complex vitamins: Learn about the vitamins that combat stress, boost energy, and slow the aging process, Burt Berkson and Arthur J. Berkson, 2006
4) http://www.acu-cell.com/bx.html5) http://ods.od.nih.gov/Health_Information/Dietary_Reference_Intakes.aspx

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