Vitamin B Complex

Vitamin B12 is one of many vitamins in the large B vitamin group, also known as the vitamin B complex. This article will address the following questions:

Which B vitamins belong to the vitamin B complex?
How does the vitamin B complex work?
What are the signs and symptoms of a B vitamin deficiency?
What is the correct dosage of B vitamins to take?
Which are the ideal active ingredients and forms of vitamin B?
When does it make sense to take a vitamin B complex?

Vitamin B Complex: The B Vitamins Work Together

The B vitamins include altogether eight different vitamins, which crucially function as coenzymes in many metabolic processes. Although they are grouped together under the B complex, the eight individual B vitamins are completely independent substances.

Even so, the vitamins within the B complex work very closely together. Some B vitamins are needed for the activation of other B vitamins, so that a deficiency of one may have a knock-on effect on another. A lack of a certain vitamin, as well as an imbalance in the supply can cause problems.

The B vitamins belong to a category of vitamins that are water soluble. This is why they disappear in the body very quickly and must be consumed in a sufficient amount on a daily basis.

To ensure a consistent supply of all B vitamins, many supplement are on sale that contain the whole complex. Whether it makes sense to take such a supplement depends, above all, on the diet of the individual; there is not always a shortage of/requirement for all the B vitamins.

Even so, often a combination can be very useful. Especially in therapeutic contexts, vitamin B complexes or combinations have obtained successful outcomes.

For more specific information on how B12 works in direct relation to other B vitamins and nutrients, see the following articles:

Which B Vitamins Belong to the Vitamin B Complex?

Today, eight vitamins are believed to belong to the B complex:

B1: thiamine
B2: riboflavin
B3: niacin
B5: pantothenic acid
B6: pyridoxine
B7: biotin
B9: folic acid/folate
B12: cobalamin

The first thing people often notice after taking a closer look at the vitamins in this group, is that their numbering is not linear. This is because some of the nutrients that were previously believed to be B vitamins are no longer counted – for example, because it has been proven that a particular vitamin can be self-produced in the body.

Frequency of B Vitamin Deficiency

How common is a deficiency of the individual B vitamins? This is a difficult question to answer – firstly, as there are few major epidemiological studies; and secondly, as there is no clear definition of deficiency across the board.

Studies which try to determine the supply of vitamin B through diet diaries are generally unreliable: often the information provided by participants is wrong and nothing is said about the actual intake of vitamins. Moreover, the nutrient content within foods vary greatly, as how they are cooked and prepared leads to different degrees of vitamin loss. Plus not all people can absorb nutrients equally well.

Even in studies that use real blood values, the results require interpretation – not helped by the fact that in this field there are wide academic debates and many unanswered questions. Do the official scales of reference reflect realistic values or are the limits too low? Why is the proportion of nutrient deficiencies many times higher if you work with reliable metabolic markers instead of serum levels?

Consequently, the graph below gives only a very roughly reflection of the frequency of vitamin B deficiency, assessed on the basis of current data.

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