B complex, once thought to be a single vitamin, is now classified as 12 related water-soluble compounds. Four can be synthesized by the body and include inositol, PABA (para-aminobenzoic acid), choline and lipoic acid. The remaining eight are not made in the body and are considered essential to good health.
Vitamin B3 is found in liver, fish, chicken, nuts, whole grains, and dried beans. Vitamin B5 is found in almost all foods. Fish, chicken, potatoes, wheat germ, bananas, and dried beans are good sources of vitamin B6. Vitamin B7 is present in peanuts, liver, egg yolk, bananas, watermelon, and grapefruit. Green leafy vegetables, liver, citrus fruits, nuts, peas, dried beans, and wheat bread contain vitamin B9. Vitamin B12 is found in eggs, meat, poultry, milk, and dairy products.
Actually, adequate amounts of the vitamin B complex group are needed on a daily basis to insure the proper function of many systems of the human body. Niacin (found in the vitamin B complex group) is found in every cell of the human body. Inadequate amounts of niacin in the diet can result in dermatitis (dry, itchy, inflamed skin), muscle soreness, cramping, exhaustion, insomnia, indigestion, mental problems, sores in the mouth and loss of appetite.
B1, known as thiamine, serves as a catalyst in carbohydrate metabolism and helps synthesize nerve-regulating substances. Deficiency can cause heart swelling, leg cramps, and muscular weakness. Rich food sources high in thiamine include liver, heart, and kidney meats, eggs, leafy green vegetables, nuts, legumes, berries, wheat germs, and enriched cereals. The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) is 1.5 mg. Some believe thiamine helps protect against alcoholism and that it is good for depression, stress, and anxiety. It is also said to improve mental ability and to help indigestion.
The Vitamin B Complex is essential for the healthy functioning of the nervous system. Vitamin B5 is needed for the correct functioning of the adrenal glands and the production of some hormones and nerve regulating substances. Vitamin B1, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12 are essential for the regulation and correct functioning of the entire nervous system including brain function. Vitamin B9 is essential to prevent neural tube defects to the foetus during pregnancy. A deficiency in any of the Vitamin B Complex vitamins can lead to feeling stressed, anxious and depressed.
Healthy Skin and Muscle – Through the creation of blood cells to feed your body nutrients and the organization of the nutrients in each of your bodies cells you are able to maintain and increase the youthful vim and vigor in your day to day life. It should be obvious that the health inside your body that you cannot see also affects the health outside your body that you and others can.
Vitamin B1 (thiamine) and Vitamin B2 riboflavin) help our bodies to produce energy from the food we eat. They also generate the enzymes that control our nerves, muscles and heart. Vitamin B3 (niacin) helps to produce energy in our cells and is important for the maintenance of our skin, digestive system and nervous system. Pantothenic acid or Vitamin B5 promotes normal growth and development from the time we are infants. Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) helps to break down protein in our body as well as the production of healthy red blood cells. It is also responsible for the health of our immune system and nervous system.
Consuming more than 400 mg/day of vitamin B 6, which is 200 times the RDA, can cause difficulty in walking, some neurological disorders and numbness in the mouth and hands. An overdose of vitamin B 3 , also known as niacin may result in the following symptoms: faintness, pounding in the head, diarrhea, jaundice and impairment of liver function, low levels of glucose tolerance, other skin lesions and abdominal cramps.