A complex of vitamins with similarities. The B vitamins are thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6, pantothenic acid, biotin, folacin, and cobalamin. They are water soluble.
A group of vitamins that generally are water soluble. These include thiamin (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3, nicotinic acid, nicotinamide), pyridoxine (B6, pryridoxal, pyridoxamine), folacin (folate, folic acid), vitamin B,2 (cobalamin), pantothenic acid (pantothenate), and biotin.
B-vitamins currently include thiamin (B-l), riboflavin (B-2), niacin (formerly known as B-3), pantothenic acid (formerly known as B-5), pyridoxine and related molecules (B-6), cobalamins (B-l2), folic acid (folate, folacin), and biotin. Along with vitamin C (ascorbic acid), these vitamins are classified as the water-soluble vitamins. While many of the B-vitamins have some related functions (such as red blood cell synthesis, energy production from macronutrients, and so forth) and often even interact in metabolism, they each have distinctly different structures and characteristics. Separate entries are provided for each B- vitamin as well as choline. These entries describe the functions, food sources, and ergogenic potential of each vitamin.
Series of water-soluble vitamins (e.g., thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pyridoxine, folic acid, cyanocobalamin) essential for normal metabolism and first believed to be a single vitamin.
A group of water-soluble vitamins that is important to good health. B vitamins help the body metabolize carbohydrates, fats, and protein and build red blood cells and are important for nerve and muscle function. Good dietary sources of B vitamins include meats, dairy products, nuts, grains, and leafy green vegetables. B deficiency diseases depend on which B vitamin is deficient. For example, folic acid deficiency in pregnant women increases the risk of a neural tube defect in the fetus, and niacin deficiency can result in pellagra (a nutritional disorder). A lack of B vitamins can cause anemia.
Any one of a group of water-soluble vitamins that, although not chemically related, are often found together in the same kinds of food (milk, liver, cereals, etc.) and all function as coenzymes.
Once believed to be a singular nutrient, vitamin B is now understood to be a group of distinct vitamins commonly referred to as the vitamin B complex. This complex includes several components, such as vitamin B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B6 (niacin and pyridoxine), among others. These vitamins are abundantly found in yeast, liver, whole-grain cereals, milk, glandular meats, eggs, some leafy vegetables, malt, and wheat germ. Vitamin B1 is critical for carbohydrate digestion, maintaining appetite, muscle function, reproduction, and lactation, with its deficiency leading to nerve damage and heart failure, and its absence causing beriberi. Vitamin B2 helps prevent pellagra, while vitamin B12 is a known treatment for pernicious anemia.