Vitamin B1 Thiamin
Thiamin is a water-soluble B-complex vitamin.
Thiamin was isolated and characterized in the 1920s, and thus was one of the first organic compounds to be recognized as a vitamin.
Thiamin is involved in numerous body functions, including: nervous system and muscle functioning; flow of electrolytes in and out of nerve and muscle cells (through ion channels); multiple enzyme processes (via the coenzyme thiamin pyrophosphate); carbohydrate metabolism; and production of hydrochloric acid (which is necessary for proper digestion).
Because there is very little thiamin stored in the body, depletion can occur as quickly as within 14 days.
It is thought that thiamin can be useful for motion sickness in air and sea travel, and that this vitamin also repels insects when excreted through the skin.
Deficiency
Severe chronic thiamin deficiency (beriberi) can result in potentially serious complications involving the nervous system/brain, muscles, heart, and gastrointestinal system.
Sources of Vitamin B1
Dietary sources of thiamin include beef, brewer’s yeast, legumes (beans, lentils), milk, nuts, oats, oranges, pork, rice, seeds, wheat, whole grain cereals, and yeast. In industrialized countries, foods made with white rice or white flour are often fortified with thiamin (because most of the naturally occurring thiamin is lost during the refinement process).
When more may be required
When taking alcohol, antacids and birth control pills or if you have hormone replacement therapy, you need to look at your thiamin intake. People suffering from depression or anxiety and those passing large volumes of urine, or suffering from an infection may all require more thiamin.
Dosage
The dosage underneath is the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), but be aware that this dosage is the minimum that you require per day, to ward off serious deficiency of this particular nutrient. In the therapeutic use of this nutrient, the dosage is usually increased considerably, but the toxicity level must be kept in mind.
RDA: Male 1.4 mg per day and female 1.0 mg per day, although 50 – 100mg is usually used in supplementation.
Toxicity and symptoms of high intake
Thiamin toxicity is uncommon; as excesses are readily excreted, although long-term supplementation of amounts larger than 3 gram have been known to cause toxicity.
