The B Vitamins

In the health and nutrition world, there are certain vitamins and minerals that the body needs. One of the most interesting of these is what is known as the vitamin B complex. Unlike other vitamins (such as vitamin A, C, D, E, or K), B is a unique vitamin in that it isn't one vitamin: it's a group of vitamins. Some time ago, it was thought that B was a single vitamin, but it turned out to be quite different. So what are the B vitamins?

There are eight total B vitamins, and a supplement that has all eight is called a vitamin B complex. They are:

• B1 is thiamine
• B2 is riboflavin
• B3 is niacin
• B5 is pantothenic acid
• B6 is pyridoxine/pirodoxomine
• B7 is biotin
• B9 is folic acid
• B12 is cobalamin

The B vitamins are very important to your health. They help with things like metabolism, healthy skin and hair, immune and nervous system, and cell division which aids in combatting anemia with blood cells. All the B vitamins are water-soluble, but they need to be replenished frequently.

And if you're paying attention to the above list, there is no vitamin B4, B8, B10, or B11. So where are they? There are actually many B vitamins, not all of which deal with humans, and some of which could be toxic. Here's the list of other B vitamins which aren't considered to be vitamins anymore:

• B4 is adenine
• B8 is adenosine monophosphate
• B10 is para-aminobenzoic acid
• B11 is pteryl-hepta-glutamic acid, which is a form of folic acid, and sometimes called vitamin S
• B13 is orotic acid
• B14 is a phosphate that has properties of a rat growth factor and cell proliferant
• B15 is pangamic acid
• B16 is dimethylglycine
• B17 is amygdalin or Laetrile, which is used in cancer treatment
• B20 is carnitine
• B22 is an extract from Aloe vera ingredients
• Bh is a type of biotin
• Bm is called "mouse factor"
• Bp is choline
• Bt is L-carnitine
• Bv is a type of B6 but not pyridoxine
• Bw is a type of biotin but not d-biotin
• Bx is a type of para-aminobenzoic acid

So, as you can see, there are actually more than just the regular B vitamin complex. However, the lower half of this list have been found to either not be vitamins at all or are not used by humans or are only used in plants. There is a long list of B vitamins, whether accepted as part of the complex or not. And while there is such a thing as too much or too little of the vitamin B complex, as stated above many of the others can be toxic to humans and others are not necessary for humans but don't hurt either.

Bet you didn't know that!