Find out more about water-soluble vitamins and learn what B vitamins are for
How does our body use water-soluble vitamins? What would happen to him if he failed to obtain the necessary amounts of “life-giving” substances? Which foods contain the most water-soluble vitamins? This material will try to answer all these questions.
Table of Contents
Vitamin B1
This vitamin is also called aneurine, thiamine or antineuritic factor. The highest amount of vitamin B1 is found in yeast, oilseeds, wheat and rice bran, beans, peas, spinach, fruits, nuts, as well as in egg yolk, cow’s milk, pork and beef, liver, kidneys. and others. It is also synthesized in the large intestine, but in small quantities.
The physiological effect of vitamin B1 is on the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, fats and water. It is part of the enzymes decarboxylase and oxidase – enzymes that break down pyruvic acid – an intermediate in the metabolism of glucose, proteins and fats. The nervous and muscular systems are the most sensitive in hypo- and B-avitaminosis.
In disorders of the intermediate metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats and the accumulation of pyruvic acid in these two systems develop inflammatory processes that lead to muscle atrophy, paralysis, heart failure, disturbances in peristalsis, secretion and resorption in the digestive system and others.
Recommended daily doses:
- Men = 1.2 milligrams;
- Women = 1.1 milligrams.
Vitamin B2
Vitamin B2 is also called lactoflavin or riboflavin. It is widespread in nature. It is found in large quantities in yeast, rice husks and cereals, green leafy plants, tomatoes, cabbage, malt, yeast, liver, kidneys, milk, egg yolk and others. The action of this vitamin is diverse. It enters as a coenzyme of certain enzymes and participates in redox processes in tissues during intracellular respiration.
It also plays an important role in the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats, in the chemistry of vision, in maintaining the integrity of the mucous membranes and more. It also affects the growth of the body. Therefore, in hypo- and avitaminosis B2 are observed: growth retardation, inflammation of the cornea and mucous membranes of the mouth, wounding the corners of the mouth.
Recommended daily doses:
- Men = 1.3 milligrams;
- Women = 1.1 milligrams. *
Vitamin B3
Also known as nicotinic acid, niacin and vitamin PP. The best sources are liver, chicken, red meat, tuna and trout, whole grain bread, nuts. This vitamin acts as a coenzyme of the enzymes responsible for releasing energy from food, including in the composition of coenzyme A. Our body produces niacin from the amino acid tryptophan in principle in sufficient quantities.
Niacin deficiency causes gout, the first symptom of which are small sores on the skin, and later – inflamed tongue, diarrhea, irritability, even depression and mental disorders.
Recommended daily doses:
- Men = 16 milligrams of niacin equivalents (960 milligrams of tryptophan);
- Women = 14 milligrams of niacin equivalents (640 milligrams of tryptophan) *.
Vitamin B5
Also called pantothenic acid and panthenol. This vitamin is found in a really huge range of foods – such as almonds, yeast, flour, liver, fish, meat, and is also produced by bacteria in our intestines. It still plays a unclear role in the metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates and fats – over 150 reactions, but is known to enter the structure of the coenzymes NAD and NADP, which in turn are oxidoreductases.
Along with other B vitamins, pantothenic acid is needed to convert food into energy, build red blood cells, bile juice and fat synthesis, adrenal steroids, antibodies, acetylcholine and other neurotransmitters. Pantothenic acid relieves wound pain from burns, cuts and scratches, reduces skin inflammation and accelerates wound healing.
Recommended daily dose:
- Men, women = 5 milligrams.
Vitamin B6
This vitamin is actually a combination of three vitamins – pyridoxol, pyridoxal and pyridoxamine. It is also called pyridoxine and adermin. Vitamin B6 is found in the largest quantities in yeast, wheat and rice bran, wheat germ, corn, legumes, liver, meat, fish and others.
This vitamin, like vitamin B2, also enters as a coenzyme of more than 50 enzymes and participates in redox processes in tissues during intracellular respiration, but is also part of a number of other enzymes in the metabolism of fats and proteins, such as the restructuring of certain amino acids. , in the synthesis of biogenic amines for the central nervous system, in the synthesis of vitamin B3.
The human body supplies itself with the required amount, but in rare cases of hypovitaminosis, dermatitis, anemia, growth retardation, nervous disorders and others are observed.
Recommended daily dose:
- Men, Women = 1.5 milligrams. *
Vitamin B7
The other two names of this vitamin are vitamin H and biotin. Foods rich in biotin are egg yolk, cheese, kidneys, soy, sunflower seeds, chocolate, mushrooms, nuts, broccoli and sweet potatoes. Along with other B vitamins, vitamin B7 helps convert food into energy by transporting carbon dioxide and is needed for the synthesis of carbohydrates, proteins, fatty and nucleic acids from the body. It is especially important for healthy hair, skin and nails.
Hypovitaminosis is rare, but may occur with long-term antibiotic treatment or prolonged consumption of raw egg whites, with discoloration of the skin, growth retardation, and nervous breakdown.
Recommended daily dose:
- Men, women = 30 micrograms.
Vitamin B9
Also called folic acid or folacin. Natural sources are internal organs, green leafy vegetables, nuts, legumes and yeast, but it is quickly lost in products stored at room temperature and in culinary processing. Folacin is a coenzyme needed by the body to gain muscle mass and form hemoglobin because it is involved in the synthesis of the amino acid serine and nucleic acids, in the metabolism of tyrosine, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and vitamin B12.
Recommended daily doses:
- Men, Women = 400 micrograms folate equivalents from food (240 micrograms folic acid taken from food supplements)
Unlike other water-soluble vitamins, folic acid accumulates in the liver and therefore should not be taken daily.
Vitamin B12
Additional names for this vitamin are cyanocobalamin and antianemic vitamin. It contains the trace element cobalt in its molecule. Vitamin B12 is found mainly in animal products – liver, kidneys, heart, muscles, egg yolk, various microorganisms and others. Its main action is the regulation of hematopoiesis. In the interaction of vitamin B12 (external Kessal factor) and a specific protein called gastromucoprotein (internal Kessal factor), which is secreted from the pyloric part of the gastric mucosa and promotes the absorption of vitamin B12, the liver forms the so-called. antianemic factor that stimulates hematopoiesis.
Recommended daily dose:
- Men, women = 2.4 micrograms. *
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is L-ascorbic acid. It is also called antiscorbutic factor. In nature, the sources of this vitamin are numerous. It is in free and connected form. The fruits rich in vitamin C are citrus fruits, rose hips, red grapes, strawberries, etc., and vegetables – peppers, spinach, nettles, fresh and sauerkraut, parsley, tomatoes, carrots and others. Of the products of animal origin, most vitamin C is contained in the liver and adrenal glands.
Vitamin C stimulates hematopoiesis, the synthesis of the factor responsible for blood clotting, the body’s resistance to infections, the antitoxic function of the liver. It also affects the functions of the digestive system, the wall of blood vessels, cell membranes and more. It is involved in many biochemical processes related to the transport of electrons, in the breakdown of the amino acids tyrosine and lysine, the synthesis of collagen and glucocorticoid hormones (eg adrenaline) and others.
Its role in maintaining high performance among bodybuilders is significant. It is important to know that the optical isomer (D-ascorbic acid) not only does not have the same vitamin activity, but is also an antivitamin of vitamin C.
A typical hypo- and avitaminosis in humans is scurvy. It starts with quick and easy fatigue, ulceration of the gums and bleeding, shaking of the teeth. Later, profuse capillary hemorrhages appear on the mucous membranes, skin, muscles and joints. Wounds heal hard and slowly. The body’s resistance to infections decreases sharply.
Recommended daily dose:
- Men = 80 milligrams;
- Women = 70 milligrams;
- Smokers should add 35 milligrams to these amounts.
Soluble vitamins Note:
With the exception of the data for vitamins B5 and B7, the indicated values are identical to those announced in Ordinance 23 of July 19, 2005 on the physiological norms for nutrition of the population, issued by the Ministry of Health. They differ from the Dietary Reference Intakes published by the Food and Nutrition Board of the American National Academy of Sciences. Institute of Medicine, as the specifics of the Bulgarian diet are taken into account. Keep this fact in mind when buying American multivitamins, minerals and other supplements.
- 1,000 micrograms = 1 milligram.
- 1,000 milligrams = 1 gram.
People also soluble vitamins look for :
The Link between Omega-3 and Children’s Growth
Zinc and Digestibility – How Does zinc Helps you ?
Magnesium : Types and Benefits – What you Need to Know
Eggs – What lies behind the shell ?
Soluble vitamins
