You’ll find them in full force in your favorite foods, and in many vitamin supplements. But do B vitamins have any side effects?
A family of eight distinct nutrients, B vitamins play important roles in the body, helping regenerate cells, beef up the immune system, improve nerve function and metabolism, among others.
Since these nutrients occur naturally in food, eating a balanced diet with substantial servings of fruits and vegetables usually ensures that you maintain your body’s recommended daily allowance (RDA) of B vitamins.
B complex vitamins have no known side effects, in doses at or close to the recommended daily allowance (RDA). Men and women have different RDAs for B-vitamins, listed here in milligrams (mg) and micrograms (mcg):
| Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin (Vitamin B1) | 1.2 mg | 1.1 mg |
| Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) | 16 mg | 14 mg |
| Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6) | 30 mcg | 30 mcg |
| Folate/folic acid (Vitamin B9 | 400 mcg | 400 mcg |
| Cobalamin (Vitamin B12 | 2.4 mcg | 2.4 mcg |
Pregnant and lactating women need higher amounts of B vitamins, while infants and children need less
B vitamins are water-soluble, which means that any excess vitamins that the body will be filtered out through your urine. That’s why overdoses on B-complex vitamins are rare: since we just pee out the excess, B-vitamins rarely build up to poisonous levels in the body.
In rare cases where B-complex intake becomes excessive, symptoms of high levels of B-complex vitamins include abdominal cramps, excessive thirst, nausea, vomiting, blurry vision, increased urination/diarrhea, high blood sugar levels, and skin flushing. These can be easily addressed at a doctor’s visit.
The consequences of having too little B-complex vitamins in your diet, however, can have more long-term deadly effects.
Vitamin B1 deficiencies can lead to beri-beri, an illness that affects the heart, the digestive system and the nervous system. Beri-beri often occurs among individuals suffering from malnutrition.
Vitamin B6 deficiencies lead to muscle weakness, depression, irritability, and nervousness, among other conditions.
And Vitamin B12 deficiencies can lead to anemia, weakness, fatigue, and loss of appetite.
If you plan on taking B-vitamin supplements, consult your doctor for the proper dosage. As long as you are taking the supplement as prescribed, it may be unlikely that you'll ever experience any side effects.
Good thing, too, because given all these benefits B-complex vitamins offer, taking them is a no-brainer. Supplementing with B-complex vitamins can help you bring your A-game every day.
Vitamin B-Complex + Vitamin E (Neurogen-E) provides you with 300mg Vitamin B1,100mg Vitamin B6, 1000mcg Vitamin B12, and 100IU Vitamin E per caplet—giving you the right amount of B-vitamins to help relieve the symptoms of nerve damage and help keep the nervous system healthy. Each caplet contains 5X more Vitamin B12 and 3X more Vitamin B1, plus added Vitamin E compared versus major players among OTC brands! It is recommended to be taken once daily.
If symptoms persist, consult your doctor.
ASC Reference No. U193P030420N
