B-Vitamins are critical to our health, which we’ll discuss in the article today, and there are a number of them! Vitamin B is water-soluble which means it’s easily depleted (especially if you’re diabetic, chronically stressed, sleep deprived or do shift-work, or taking birth control pills to name a few). Thankfully, it’s almost impossible to become toxic from too much Vit. B, your body simply flushes extra Vit. B with your urine in case you get too much. But, it’s a big deal if you’re deficient in Vitamin B! There are 8 B-Vitamins have similar roles and chemical properties, although each has unique functions; well discuss some of those below:
- vitamin B1 (thiamine); vitamin B2 (riboflavin); vitamin B3 (niacin); vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid); vitamin B6 (pyridoxine); vitamin B7 (biotin); vitamin B12; and vitamin B9 (folate, or folic acid if in synthetic form)
Just some highlights of the vital role B-Vitamins play in our health: Vit B6 is important for facilitating movement, memory, energy expenditure and blood flow. Vit B12 is needed for adrenal health, multiple metabolic functions, enzyme production, DNA synthesis and hormonal balance.Vit B5 balances blood sugar, helps reduce “bad” cholesterol, and helps prevent heart failure, and helps in hormone production. B1 can help with sleep apnea. Our bodies use vitamin B throughout the day, and we cannot store extra vitamin B that we’ve consumed, so we must replenish our supply often by eating:
- Organ meats, like liver or kidneys
- Grass-fed meat
- Wild-caught fish, like salmon, mackerel, halibut, sardines, etc.
- Free-range eggs
- Pastured chicken and turkey
- Lamb
- Raw milk
- Dairy products, like yogurt, cheese and kefir
- Leafy green vegetables
- Nuts and seeds, like sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts and more
- Sea vegetables, like spirulina
- Beans, legumes and peas
- Nutritional yeast