Whole Food Nutrition
Vitamin B2 Riboflavin
Riboflavin, or vitamin B2, regulates red blood cell growth
and helps maintain a strong immune system by protecting the body
from free-radical damage. Riboflavin also promotes healthy hair,
skin, nails, and vision.
Without riboflavin, the other B vitamins, especially niacin
(vitamin B3) and pyridoxine (vitamin B6), cannot do their job,
and a host of chemical processes necessary to keep the body
alive would come to a grinding halt.
You also need riboflavin to produce flavin mononucleotide and
flavin adenine dinucleotide, two enzymes that help the body
convert fats, carbohydrates, and proteins into energy. Without
enough riboflavin, these two enzymes are unable to work together
to ensure your cells can both reproduce correctly and supply the
body with the fuel it needs stay alive.
Vitamin B2 is important to other chemical processes in the body
as well. Folate (a naturally occurring form of folic acid) and
pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) are transformed by riboflavin into
the neurotransmitters crucial for thinking and memory. In fact,
people with high levels of riboflavin have been shown to perform
better on memory tests.
The best source of riboflavin is milk and there’s enough
riboflavin in a quart of milk to supply the daily needs of most
people. Of course, most of us don’t consume a quart of milk each
day. Cheese, leafy green vegetables, liver, yeast, almonds and
mature soybeans are good sources of vitamin B2, but exposure to
light will destroy the riboflavin in these natural sources. Any
excess is excreted in the urine, frequently imparting a bright
yellow color. As the human body does not store riboflavin it is
thought deficiency is common.
Riboflavin is a water-soluble vitamin, and although small
amounts of it are stored in your kidneys and liver, Vitamin B2
must, nevertheless, be replaced daily, as the bulk of it is
eliminated from the body through urination, exercise, sweating,
etc. This, of course, is a further rationalization for taking
supplemental doses of Vitamin B2, aka riboflavin
Though riboflavin deficiencies are rare, those that take oral
contraceptives or regularly consume alcohol may want to
supplement this vitamin, as these substances decrease the amount
of riboflavin your body is able to absorb. Also, the elderly,
those who perform regular strenuous exercise, diabetics, and the
lactose intolerant may not be able to absorb enough riboflavin
from their diet to meet their needs, and may want to consider
taking extra riboflavin.
|
