Vitamins are tricky substances. Their effects are usually subtle, and you’re not quite sure if they are making a difference in your body. However, Vitamin B deficiency is a common occurrence such that supplementing with B vitamins can lead to a very quick noticeable change in your body. Vitamin B can help your brain breathe and become more efficient, making you more productive and more flexible to get things done.
This article provides an overview of how Vitamin B supplementation results in an overall boost to your health and will show you why Onnit Active B complete is a good choice for a supplement.
What is Vitamin B?
Vitamin B does not refer to only one vitamin. It refers to a class of “B vitamins” that dissolve in water which the body uses as materials for its many chemical reactions. This purpose means that they secure that the human anatomy successfully fulfills its many metabolic pathways.
Vitamin B complex is the term used to refer to supplements containing all eight of the B vitamins: B1 or thiamine, B2 or riboflavin, B3 or niacin, B5, B6, B7, B9 or folate, and B12. The medical community collectively recognizes the B vitamins’ role in improving mood, memory, energy, and skin health.
Let’s take a quick look at the many aspects of how Vitamin B helps the human body.
Energy promoter
The critical effect of Vitamin B relies on its importance for energy mechanisms in the body. The brain relies on B vitamins to convert neurotransmitters and recycle waste products. Vitamin B also protects nerve coverings to ensure that the signals the brain sends are received efficiently.
The medical community has believed that the usual diet contains enough Vitamin B for ordinary human functions. Food products are enriched with Vitamin B to support this goal. However, recent controversy has arisen questioning whether the recommended amount of B vitamins consumed is sufficient.
Studies have shown that almost half of people between ages 26 and 83 are bordering on Vitamin B12 deficiency. These B12 levels already cause different mental states such as weakness, lack of focus, and tiredness.
This deficiency may explain why many athletes attest to Vitamin B12 injections in giving them an instant boost in energy and alertness.
Performance booster
If you’re an athlete, you need Vitamin B to help you improve your physical performance. Studies show that supplementation of Vitamins B1, B6, and B12 to novice pentathletes heightened their results over eight weeks. Regarding shooting, Vitamin B improves scores by making the athlete calmer and more in control of his or her motor functions.
Other studies show that Vitamin B6 is vital in the production of mood, pain and anxiety controllers called serotonin and GABA. Also, Vitamin B helps create hemoglobin, which transports oxygen to the muscles during strenuous activities, leading to less fatigue in the muscles.
Mood regulator
Regarding mood, B vitamins make you feel better overall. Studies show that women experiencing intense pre-menstrual irritability are calmer after a three-month supplementation with Vitamin B6. This effect agrees with studies correlating Vitamin B6 levels and an overall positive outlook on life.
Feeling stressed? A study on 60 people supplemented with Vitamin B complex reported lower levels of stress after three months. Respondents became more alert and happier in the workroom.
Memory enhancer
Continuing the thread on mental benefits, Vitamin B also helps with enhancing memory. A study on 211 middle-aged (and older) women saw that a daily intake of Vitamins B6, B9 and B12 saw significant improvements in remembering after just 35 days.
Men also benefit from Vitamin B, specifically with Vitamin B6. Men aged 70 to 79 had better long-term memories after three months of Vitamin B6 intake.
Detoxifier
During normal metabolism, carbohydrates convert to energy. However, this creates toxic waste materials called glyoxals. Vitamin B1 has been studied to degrade glyoxals further and prevent them from causing disease and cell damage.
Headache controller
Vitamin B also helps relieve headaches. Studies show that a three-month Vitamin B2 supplementation results to at least 50% reduction of headache occurrences among otherwise healthy adults. Additionally, young individuals supplemented with riboflavin also saw a half-reduction of headache occurrences but with a reduction of pain by around 20%.
Skin enhancer
Last but not least, Vitamin B5 has been shown to reduce acne by up to 70% after 12 weeks! Overall, you will not only feel healthier on B vitamins, but you will also look fresher.
Who needs Vitamin B supplements the most?
Vitamin B levels are met by a balanced and healthy diet. Vegetarians, however, including vegans, are at risk of Vitamin B12 deficiency since this occurs typically in animal sources. People who don’t eat meat must supplement with Vitamin B12.
Is it true that Vitamin B causes cancer?
The shocking news made rounds on the internet that Vitamins B6 and B12 supplementation increases the risk of lung cancer. The people who participated in this study who had increased lung cancer risk were male smokers. Additionally, they were taking massive amounts of Vitamins B6 and B12, much higher than the recommended dose. This effect was absent in women with similar circumstances.
The lead researcher said that men taking Vitamin B should quit smoking. After all, smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer. What we can get from this news is that not only should we not smoke, we should also not believe a short sensationalist headline.
After all, results are not yet conclusive. Another study shows that high levels of Vitamin B6 and methionine lead to up to 60% less chance of developing lung cancer.
Supplementing B vitamins is essential for overall health, as long as you take them as directed. They are not medicine, and thus you shouldn’t take them to cure a disease.
What type of Vitamin B is advisable?
Even though the various B vitamins form as one “Vitamin B,” we saw that the different types of B vitamins have specific benefits. We take them as one because all of them are important, and only taking one B vitamin can cause an unhealthy imbalance.
A good Vitamin B supplement has all of the B vitamins. However, since Westerners usually receive lower levels of Vitamin B1 in their meals, a good Vitamin B supplement also has higher amounts of Vitamin B1.
Not all Vitamin B1 supplements are made the same, though. They exist in different forms. Studies show that the benfotiamine form increases Vitamin B1 levels up to five times more, and is up to 4 times more available to be used by the body.
Speaking of different forms of B vitamins, look for a methylated Vitamin B. Instead of purchasing folic acid, buy methyltetrahydrofolate (the form Vitamin B9 occurs naturally) as studies have shown it to be easier absorbed and used.
All of the above requirements are met in Onnit Active B Complete. This supplement is a caffeine-free, soy-free and gluten-free capsule containing 100% daily values (DV) for all the B vitamins. On top of 100% DV for Vitamin B1, benfotiamine (in the form BenfoPure) is added to ensure that dietary deficiencies of Western diets are met. Also, Vitamins B9 and B12 are methylated and come in the forms methyltetrahydrofolate (called Quatrefolic) and methylcobalamin, respectively.
Onnit Active B Complete is a good mixture of highly absorbable forms of B vitamins, ensuring a healthier and happier life for those who take it. Treat your brain and your body better by supplementing with these B vitamins.
