Do you know your B6 from your B12? Learn all about B vitamins, from benefits & vitamin B foods to signs of deficiencies & more
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Ready to learn more about vitamin B? First, it’s important to know that there are actually eight different types of B vitamins that all help support our overall health and wellbeing. They are known as:
- Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
- Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
- Vitamin B3 (niacin)
- Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)
- Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
- Vitamin B7 (biotin)
- Vitamin B9 (folate, or folic acid – the synthetic version of folate used in supplements)
- Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)
You should be able to get all of the B vitamins you need from eating a varied, healthy and balanced diet. So, in this guide, we’re here to talk through the foods high in vitamin B, along with the benefits of each B vitamin, recommended daily intake, possible signs of deficiencies, and vitamin B complex supplements to consider, if suitable for you.
What does Vitamin B do?
While there is some crossover, each B vitamin plays a different role in supporting the way our bodies function.
B vitamins can’t be stored in the body (except for B9 and B12 which are stored in the liver), so you need to get them through your diet, every day. It’s still important to get enough vitamin B9 and B12 through your diet even though it can be stored, to avoid the risk of folate or vitamin B12 deficiency anaemia which we talk more about in the ‘How to know if you have a vitamin B deficiency’ section of the article, below.
Here’s a guide to each B vitamin:
Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
Vitamin B1 benefits
Vitamin B1 has a range of benefits, including:
- Helping your body turn food into energy
- Supporting your heart
- Contributing to the health of your nervous system
- Supporting normal psychological function
Vitamin B1 food sources
You can find vitamin B1 in a range of foods, including:
- Bananas
- Oranges
- Peas
- Nuts
- Legumes
- Dried beans
- Soybeans
- Lentils
- Rice
- Yeast
- Wholegrain breads
- Some fortified breakfast cereals
- Pork
- Liver (this should be avoided if you’re pregnant due to high levels of vitamin A which can be harmful to your baby)
How much vitamin B1 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B1 needed for adults is:
- 0.8mg per day for women
- 1mg per day for men
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
Vitamin B2 benefits
Vitamin B2 has many benefits, including:
- Helping your body build red blood cells
- Contributing to the health of your nervous system
- Helping your body turn food into energy
- Supporting the health of your skin and eyes
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
Vitamin B2 food sources
Vitamin B2 can be found in a range of food sources, including:
- Dairy products like milk and plain yoghurt
- Eggs
- Mushrooms
- Almonds
- Fortified breakfast cereals
- Red meat (such as beef)
- Salmon
- Cod
- Chicken
It’s important to note that vitamin B2 is sensitive to light and UV rays, so these foods should be protected from light, for example by keeping them in a fridge or cupboard.
How much vitamin B2 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B2 needed for adults is around:
- 1.1mg per day for women
- 1.3mg per day for men
Vitamin B3 (niacin)
Vitamin B3 benefits
There are many benefits of vitamin B3, including:
- Supporting the health of your skin
- Helping your body turn food into energy
- Contributing to the health of your nervous system
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
- Supporting normal psychological function
Vitamin B3 food sources
You can find vitamin B3 in:
- Eggs
- Wheat flour
- Meat
- Fish
- Nuts
- Legumes
How much vitamin B3 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B3 needed for adults is around:
- 13.2mg per day for women
- 16.5mg per day for men
Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)
Vitamin B5 benefits
Vitamin B5 supports your body in several ways, including:
- Helping your body turn food into energy
- Contributing to normal mental performance
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
Vitamin B5 food sources
You can get vitamin B5 from your diet through foods, including:
- Most vegetables
- Wholegrain foods
- Mushrooms
- Avocado
- Eggs
- Nuts
- Beans
- Peas
- Lentils
- Dairy products
- Meats including chicken, beef and liver (liver should be avoided if you’re pregnant)
- Some fortified breakfast cereals
How much vitamin B5 you need each day
There isn’t a set amount in the UK for how much vitamin B5 is needed each day, but as it’s found in so many foods, you should be able to get all you need from your diet.
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
Vitamin B6 benefits
Vitamin B6 has many benefits, including:
- Helping to regulate hormonal activity
- Supporting the immune system
- Helping the body to release energy from protein and carbohydrates found in food
- Supporting the formation of red blood cells which carry oxygen around the body
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
- Contributing to the health of your nervous system
- Supporting normal psychological function
Vitamin B6 food sources
There are a wide range of vitamin B6 food sources, including:
- Oats
- Peanuts
- Soybeans
- Milk
- Wheat germ
- Bananas
- Some fortified breakfast cereals
- Pork
- Chicken and turkey
- Some types of fish
Vitamin B6 is also made naturally by the bacteria that live in your gut.
How much vitamin B6 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B6 needed for adults is around:
- 1.2mg per day for women
- 1.4mg per day for men
Vitamin B7 (biotin)
Vitamin B7 benefits
There are several benefits of vitamin B7, including:
- Supporting the health of your skin and hair
- Contributing to the health of your nervous system
- Supporting normal psychological function
- Helping the body release energy from food and macronutrients
Vitamin B7 food sources
Vitamin B7 is made naturally by the bacteria in your gut. However, it’s also found in small levels in the following foods:
- Egg yolks
- Liver and kidney (you shouldn’t eat liver if you’re pregnant)
- Nuts and nut butters
- Soybeans
- Wholegrains and cereals
- Bananas
- Mushrooms
- Cauliflower
How much vitamin B7 you need each day
Vitamin B7 is only needed in small amounts and there is no set daily amount stated in the UK.
Vitamin B9 (folate)
Vitamin B9 benefits
Vitamin B9 supports the body in many ways, including:
- Contributing to maternal tissue growth during pregnancy
- Helping the body synthesise amino acids from food
- Supporting cell division and helping normal blood cell formation
- Supporting the immune system
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
- Contributing to normal psychological function
Vitamin B9 food sources
You can find vitamin B9 in small amounts in the following foods:
- Green vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach, cabbage and kale
- Avocado
- Eggs
- Chickpeas
- Kidney beans
- Peas
- Liver (this should be avoided if you’re pregnant)
- Fortified breakfast cereals
- Citrus fruits
How much vitamin B9 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B9 needed for adults is around 200 micrograms per day.
If you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, it’s recommended to take a folic acid supplement of 400 micrograms until you’re 12 weeks pregnant (folic acid is the name for the manmade version of vitamin B9/folate).
This is to support the development of your baby and help prevent neural tube defects, such as spina bifida.
In some cases, a higher dose is recommended for those with a higher risk of their baby developing defects. Your GP should be able to advise further. We talk more about vitamin B supplements further on in this article.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 benefits
Vitamin B12 has many benefits, including:
- Helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue
- Supporting the immune system
- Contributing to normal psychological function
- Supporting the health of the nervous system
- Helping the body release energy from food
- Supporting cell division and helping normal blood cell formation
Vitamin B12 food sources
Vitamin B12 is mostly found in meat and dairy foods, including:
- Kidney and liver (liver should be avoided if you’re pregnant)
- Fish
- Milk
- Cheese
- Eggs
If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet, it can be hard to get enough B12 as it’s not naturally found in foods such as fruit, vegetables or grains. Vegan sources include:
- Fortified breakfast cereals
- Fortified nutritional yeast
- Fortified alternatives to dairy milk (unsweetened versions are better for you than sweetened)
Vegans and vegetarians can be more prone to vitamin B12 deficiency. We talk more about vitamin B deficiencies and supplements to consider with the advice of your GP further on in the article.
How much vitamin B12 you need each day
The recommended amount of vitamin B12 needed for adults is around 1.5 micrograms per day.
How to know if you have a vitamin B deficiency
The only way to know for certain if you have a vitamin B deficiency is to have this checked by your GP who can confirm it through a blood test.
It’s important not to self-diagnose and start taking supplements without the advice of your GP. Taking too much of some of the B vitamins can be harmful. (We talk more about this in the section on vitamin B supplements below).
Instead, you should see your GP if you have any of the following symptoms, which could be a sign of a possible vitamin B deficiency:
- Feeling weak or fatigued
- Experiencing heart palpitations (when your heartbeat becomes more noticeable)
- Shortness of breath
- Appetite loss
- Headaches
- Problems with your mouth, such as a swollen tongue or mouth ulcers
- Feelings of depression or irritability
- Digestive problems, including indigestion or diarrhoea
- Confusion or problems with your memory
While many people should be able to get all of the B vitamins they need from their diet, some groups of people are more at risk of deficiencies, including those who:
- Have certain long-term health conditions, such as Crohn’s Disease
- Take certain medications
- Eat a strict vegan or vegetarian diet which can put you at risk of vitamin B12 deficiency
Deficiencies in B vitamins can lead to health complications, including:
- Problems with digestion
- Skin issues
- Infections
- Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia – which stops your red blood cells from functioning normally and can lead to further health complications such as damage to the nervous system (peripheral neuropathy)
Should I take a vitamin B supplement?
You should be able to get most of the B vitamins you need from a healthy, balanced diet, but you could consider taking a supplement to help cover you for any times when your diet may fall short. It’s important to note that supplements aren’t a substitute for a healthy, balanced diet.
If you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, the advice is to take a daily 400-microgram folic acid supplement until you’re 12 weeks pregnant to support the healthy development of your baby, though, in higher-risk cases your GP may recommend a higher dose.
If you simply want to supplement your diet and make sure you’ve got all your vitamin B needs covered, you may want to consider taking a vitamin B complex supplement which usually contains all or several of the B vitamins.
If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet and/or have a known deficiency in vitamin B12, you may be advised to take a vitamin B12 supplement. If you don’t eat any vitamin B12-fortified food and drinks, you may wish to consider a vitamin B12 supplement to support your dietary needs.
It's important to only take vitamin B supplements as instructed on the label, as having too much of certain B vitamins can be harmful and cause side effects:
- Too much vitamin B6 – can lead to damage to your nervous system (peripheral neuropathy)
- Too much vitamin B9 (folic acid or folate) – can mask the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, which can lead to damage of the nervous system
- Too much vitamin B3 (niacin) – can lead to liver damage
You’re unlikely to get too much of the B vitamins through your everyday diet, or if you take supplements as directed, because most are not stored in your body and the excess is passed out through your urine.
Speak to your GP or pharmacist for specific advice about what supplements might be right for you.
If you’d like to learn more, read our article on What are vitamins & what do they do or shop our full range of vitamins and supplements.
Frequently asked questions
What is vitamin B for?
Each of the eight types of B vitamins support our overall health in different ways, for example vitamin B9 (folate or folic acid) can help to support the development of babies in the womb, while vitamin B12 can help to reduce tiredness and fatigue. You can find out more about the benefits of each B vitamin and what they’re for under the ‘What does vitamin B do?’ section of the article.
Why do adults need vitamin B?
B vitamins are a group of eight essential nutrients that each have different benefits for the body, contributing to our overall health and wellbeing. You can find out more about why we need each of the B vitamins under the ‘What does vitamin B do?’ section of the article.
Is it better to take B12 or B complex?
The choice between B12 and B complex depends on your specific health needs and dietary intake.
A vitamin B12 supplement may be recommended by your GP if you have a known B12 deficiency and you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet and you can’t get enough of this from the food you eat.
A vitamin B complex supplement usually contains all or several of the B vitamins and may be recommended if you’re at risk of deficiency in multiple B vitamins.
You can learn more about vitamin B12 and B complex supplements and guidance in the ‘Should I take a vitamin B supplement?’ section of the article.
What happens when vitamin B is low?
If you’re deficient in B vitamins, it can lead to health complications such as infections, problems with the skin or digestion and damage to the nervous system (peripheral neuropathy).
You can learn more about vitamin B deficiency and when you should see a GP in the ‘How to know if you have a vitamin B deficiency’ section of the article.
How much vitamin B complex should I take daily?
You should be able to get all the B vitamins you need from your diet. If you want to supplement your diet with a vitamin B complex, or have been advised to do so by your GP, you should take it as instructed by the pack or your GP, as having too much of certain B vitamins can be harmful. You can learn more in the ‘Should I take a vitamin B supplement?’ section of the article.
