Getting B Vitamins From Your Diet

1 min

B vitamins are vital to overall health: They support adrenal function (the glands that produce hormones that play a role in controlling blood sugar, burning fat and protein, and regulating blood pressure), calm and maintain a healthy nervous system, promote key metabolic processes, and turn starch and sugar into energy (by acting as a cofactor for the metabolism of carbohydrates). The good news is that most of the B vitamins can be obtained through your diet. Learn more about which B vitamin foods can provide this array of Bs.

Vitamin B1, also known as thiamin, can be found in legumes (such as beans and lentils), brewer's yeast, steelcut or rolled oats, wheat germ and rice bran, whole milk, nuts, seeds and oranges.
Vitamin B2, also called riboflavin, can be obtained through full fat dairy products (look for products in containers or cartons, not clear glass or plastic, as riboflavin is easily destroyed by sunlight), eggs, broccoli, asparagus, turnip greens, spinach, buckwheat and fish.
Vitamin B3, also known as niacin, can be found in truly whole grains, nuts and legumes, as well as chicken breast, salmon, tuna and veal.
Vitamin B5, also called pantothenic acid, can be found in found in whole grain cereals, legumes, avocado, eggs, meat, and yogurt.
Vitamin B6, also known as pyridoxine, is found in whole grains, legumes, bananas, brewer's yeast, carrots, peas, spinach, potatoes, cheese, milk, eggs, fish and sunflower seeds.
Vitamin B7, also known as biotin, can be found in foods including brewers yeast, barley, egg yolks, milk, wheat bran and whole soy foods, as well as avocados, cheeses, broccoli and cauliflower, fish, mushrooms, legumes, nuts, potatoes, and spinach.
Vitamin B9, also called folate or folic acid, is found in spinach, beans, bananas, lemons, melons, legumes, yeast and mushrooms.
Vitamin B12, also known as cyanocobalamin, is present in mainly animal-derived foods, including dairy, eggs, meat, fish (including clams, herring, cooked oysters and wild Alaskan salmon) and poultry are the only food sources of B12, so this important vitamin is often deficient in vegan diets.