B1.

In my ongoing vitamin exploration series, we come to vitamin B1 (AKA Thaimine). Although it's not a flashy vitamin and really gets overlooked, it is vitally important. Thiamine is responsible for enabling the body to use carbohydrates as energy. Most of our energy comes from carbohydrates and so it's kinda important to have thiamine on board to help you make energy. It's also needed for muscle, nerve and heart function.

As a water soluble vitamin, you really don't keep stores of it and any excess is just peed out. This also means that you need a steady supply of it in your diet. B1 is not too difficult to find. Many cereals and grains are fortified with it. You can also find it in beef, eggs, pork, cauliflower, oranges, asparagus and kale. You need 1.1mg per day for women and 1.2mg for men.

Thiamine deficiency is called beriberi and results in problems with peripheral nerves, wasting, along with mental and memory problems. Risk of deficiency is highest in those with cancer, a poor diet, those with bariatric surgery and on hemodialysis. Chronic alcoholics do not absorb B1 from their food and can become susceptible to Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome which result in the same symptoms of deficiency.

So here's a little more about B1 you may or may not know. Like I said, not flashy, but absolutely vital for health.