Importance of Thiamine (vitamin B-1)

Importance of Thiamine (vitamin B-1)
Introduction:
Vitamin B-1 is a water soluble vitamin and an important role in the provision of energy to the human body. It is also known as thiamine or Aneurine. It is a white solid and is highly water soluble. Thiamine occurs in the animal and plant tissues in the form of thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) that is also known as cocarboxylase or as the diphophate ester of thiamine. It is transported through blood stream. Only a little of water soluble vitamins stay in body, most of them is excreted through urine so the same for thiamine. It is essential for glucose metabolism, in nerve, muscle and heart function. This article discusses the importance of vitamin B-1 in human body and some of its other aspects.
Importance of Thiamine:
Thiamine is important with respect to its functions in the human body. These include:
Functions:
Thiamine is converted into its active form that is thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) by an enzyme thiamine diphosphotransferase in brain and liver. In this from thiamine performs its function in the metabolism of glucose and pyruvate.
It helps the body cells in obtaining the energy from the food.
It keeps the nerves healthy and enhances the appetite and improves digestion.
Thiamin also plays its role in muscle contraction and conduction of nerve impulses.
It is also helpful in maintaining the good health of skin, eyes, liver and hair.
As it is a part of B vitamins family, so it has an anti-stress effect on the human body in stress conditions.
It also keeps the heart, brain, stomach and intestines healthy.
It is involved in the flow of electrolytes across the cell.
It is given to the people with the diseases ulcerative colitis, diarrhea and poor appetite to treat them.
Thiamine injections are also given to the patients with coma.
Sources of vitamin B-1:
Thiamine is found in the following:
It is rich in the outer layers of cereals and also in some other e.g yeast, beef, pork etc.
Fruits and vegetables that contain thiamine are cauliflower, oranges, potatoes, asparagus and kale.
Enriched, fortified, and whole grain products such as bread, cereals, rice, pasta, and flour
Wheat germ
Trout and tuna
Eggs
Legumes and peas
Watermelon
Milk and meat (especially heart, kidney and liver)
Nuts and seeds
Dairy products don’t contain appreciable amount of thiamine when consumed in small quantities but when taken in large quantities, they become a rich source of thiamine.
Humans need a continuous supply of vitamin B1, because it is not stored in the body. It should be part of your daily diet intake.
Deficiency symptoms:
Deficiency symptoms of thiamine include:
Shortage of energy
Weight loss
Anorexia
Constipation
Lesions of nervous system and brain
Confusion and short term memory loss
Muscle wasting
Appetite suppression
Nausea
Mental depression and;
Fatigue
Disease of Beriberi
Recommended doses of Thiamine:
The recommended doses of thiamine are given below:
The recommended dose of thiamine for males is 1.2 mg while for females is 1.1 mg on daily bases over the age of 18 years.
Pregnant or breastfeeding women should consume about 1.4 mg of this vitamin daily.
For infants, it is 0.2 to 0.3 mg per day.
For children it may vary, for children 9 to 13 years the recommended doses are 0.9 mg per day.
Deficiency diseases:
The deficiency of thiamine may cause:
Beriberi
Wernicke-korsakoff syndrome
Beriberi:
Chronic thiamine deficiency leads to Beriberi. It is characterized by severe symptoms of:
Mental confusion
Ataxia
Loss of eye coordination
Muscular weakness
Palpitation of heart
Degeneration of nerves
Accumulation of pyruvic acid in the blood
This disease is prevalent in those areas where polished rice is consumed as staple food.
Wernicke-korsakoff syndrome:
This disease may be due to poor dietetic lifestyle. It is commonly found in people who are consuming excessive alcohol. It is because the alcohol consumption disables such people to absorb thiamine from their food and they become thiamine deficient. If this disease is not treated, it can be fatal. Thiamine injections can be given to treat this disease.
Side-effects of overdoses:
There is no known side-effect of overdoses of thiamine. As, thiamine is water soluble, excess of it is never retained and is excreted through urine. But you must visit a dietician and should consider his prescription.
Conclusion:
So, in the light of above discussion thiamine is very important for the normal body functioning and to prevent the energy shortage. You must supplement it if it is depleted.