3 Reasons You Need Vitamin B1

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B vitamins support adrenal function, calm and maintain a healthy nervous system, promote key metabolic processes, turn starch and sugar into energy (by acting as a cofactor for the metabolism of carbohydrates) and play an important role in nerve transmission.

Vitamin B1, more commonly known as thiamin (or thiamine), influences a variety of physiological functions, including:

1. Nervous system and muscle functioning
2. Carbohydrate metabolism
3. Healthy digestion

Good dietary sources of thiamin include legumes (beans, lentils), pasture-raised beef and pork, brewer’s yeast, steel-cut or rolled oatmeal, rice bran and wheat germ, whole milk, nuts, seeds and oranges. I recommend taking thiamin daily as part of a B-complex supplement that contains a full spectrum of B vitamins as it seems best to supplement all the B vitamins in a group unless your provider feels that a single vitamin is necessary. Be ready for a change in urine color, which is a by-product of the B vitamin riboflavin and not a sign that you are getting rid of extra vitamins that you do not need.

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