Vitamin B refers to a group of eight water-soluble vitamins, each playing essential roles in body function and health. These include:

1. B1 (Thiamine): Helps convert nutrients into energy¹.
2. B2 (Riboflavin): Important for growth, development, and the function of the cells in your body¹.
3. B3 (Niacin): Crucial for converting nutrients into energy and maintaining healthy skin and nerve function¹.
4. B5 (Pantothenic Acid): Necessary for synthesizing coenzyme A, which is important in fatty acid metabolism².
5. B6 (Pyridoxine): Involved in many reactions in the body, particularly in amino acid metabolism¹.
6. B7 (Biotin): Plays a key role in the metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins¹.
7. B9 (Folate): Vital for synthesizing DNA and RNA, and particularly important during periods of rapid growth such as pregnancy and infancy¹.
8. B12 (Cobalamin): Essential for neurological function and the formation of red blood cells¹.

These vitamins help enzymes release energy from food and play various roles in carrying oxygen and maintaining overall body health³. Many B vitamins must be consumed regularly through diet as they cannot be stored by the body⁴. Deficiencies in B vitamins can lead to conditions such as anemia and neurological disorders³⁴.

You can obtain B vitamins from a balanced diet including proteins like fish, poultry, meat, eggs, and dairy products, as well as leafy greens, beans, and certain fortified cereals¹⁴.

Footnotes

1. MedlinePlus, 2021. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

2. Harvard Nutrition Source, 2024. ↩

3. Mary Hanna, PMC, 2022. ↩ ↩²

4. Better Health, 2022. ↩ ↩² ↩³