Is There A Reasonable Way To Get Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6 From Food?

[cyclops]

Is there really a huge benefit in trying to get B-vitamins from nutritional or brewer's yeast over just taking the B-Vitamins you need from the pure supplements? It's seems like there are downsides to both yeasts and you could just take them as vitamins.

 

[Waremu]

It’s probably harder to get B vitamins for those who don’t drink milk, but with half a gallon of skim milk and coffee and a few cups of OJ per day I easily get 2-3 times or more the RDA of most of the B vitamins. Liver also. Pasteurized milk has a little less of the B-Vitamin content than raw milk, possibly, but not a massive difference. The brand of UHT skim milk I use doesn’t even really expose their milk to much if any light, so even the Riboflavin which is sensqtuve to light likely remains in good amounts (probably not the case with milk that comes in clear plastic however). Also the ultra-pasteurization process is so quick the heat doesnt diminish most of the vitamins that much. With most of the large milk producers in the US, it’s a straight shot in processing where the milk comes straight from the cow through a closed tube, into a truck that holds it in tanks, then straight into the facility via a tube system, all free from contact with human touch or light for the most part. It makes it from the tubes (which are not clear so light doesn’t get through them) into the machines that pasteurizes and homogenizes or separates the fat from the protein portion and then bottles or packages it. Those who get their milk directly from a farmer probably have to pay more attention to using their own dark class jars or anything that’s not clear for light to get in when they get their milk from the farmer since the farmer probably puts it in clear jars where it is exposed to light and therefore loses a decent amount of riboflavin, quite possibly.

 

[cyclops]

It’s probably harder to get B vitamins for those who don’t drink milk, but with half a gallon of skim milk and coffee and a few cups of OJ per day I easy get 2-3 times or more the RDA of most of the B vitamins. Pasteurized milk has a little less of the B-Vitamin content than raw milk, possibly, but not a massive difference. The brand of UHT skim milk I use doesn’t even really expose their milk to much if any light, so even the Riboflavin which is sensqtuve to light likely remains in good amounts (probably not the case with milk that comes in clear plastic however). With most of the large milk producers in the US, it’s a straight shot in processing where the milk comes straight from the cow through a closed tube, into a truck that holds it in tanks, then straight into the facility via a tube system, all free from contact with human touch or light for the most part. It makes it from the tubes (which are not clear so light doesn’t get through them) into the machines that pasteurize and homogenizes or separates the fat from the protein portion and then bottles or packages it. Those who get their milk directly from a farmer probably have to pay more attention to using their own dark class jars or anything that’s not clear for light to get in when they get their milk from the farmer since the farmer probably puts it in clear jars where it is exposed to light and therefore loses a decent amount of riboflavin, quite possibly.

Interesting. Do you think the same could be said about using skim (greek) yogurt in the US? Meaning you are covered with most of the B-vitamins in the same way as skim milk?

 

[Waremu]

Interesting. Do you think the same could be said about using skim (greek) yogurt in the US? Meaning you are covered with most of the B-vitamins in the same way as skim milk?

I am not too sure how much light Greek yogurt is exposed to, but I would imagine it is exposed to much more light than milk which is a pretty fresh product so I would imagine it may lose more of the free riboflavin content. But again, I am not too sure on that as I haven’t looked into how it is processed like with milk. But it is likely that it is exposed to more light as it is processed more and therefore, to me, I would trust it less for the more light sensative B vitamin content. Also, I don’t know what break-down products are formed during the fermentation process and whether it negatively or posatively affects the B vitamins and so I would look into that. According to a recent Chris Masterjohn podcast, some foods or juices that are exposed to light can form anti-riboflavin substances, but not sure if this happens with yogurt.

 

[cyclops]

Cool.

I guess I'm wondering if there is any huge benefit in using brewers or nutritional yeast over the isolated b-vitamins (that I already have) if someone thinks they could use more b-vitamins. With the isolated vitamins I can take exactly the amount I want of each individually which is nice.

I see the merit in using a natural food source over isolated vitamins, but since these yeasts can be estrogenic I think it may be better just to use the vitamins.

 

[kyle]

Never noticed any negative effects or estrogenic effect from brewers yeast tbh. I do the extracaction, dont need to filter it just drink it off the top and leave the sediment on the bottom.

 

[Jon]

Never noticed any negative effects or estrogenic effect from brewers yeast tbh. I do the extracaction, dont need to filter it just drink it off the top and leave the sediment on the bottom.

How do you do this? I’ve tried over and over again to figure out how to use hot water extract without destroying the b’s but google has always come up short lol.

 

[kyle]

Boil water, pour the water in a coffee cup and stir in a couple scoops of brewer's yeast and let it sit for a bit.

As for its potency, I go by how I react with it and the taste - it has a bitterness similar to the dissolved b-powders so I know something is getting extracted. Actually, the flavor is somewhat reminiscent of haidtus b complex but nuttier.

As for ultra-exact science in my method, I don't have that answer.

For that matter, I think craving bitter foods like sourdough bread indicates b-vit deficiency. Same with coffee, chocolate.

I would take the empirical approach, and sip on the brewers yeast thing until you feel better. I think that is one advantage over throwing back pills everyday or counting macros for example, you have a better sense of what is going on when you can taste and react to how much you are taking. My guess is if you aren't digging the flavor, you aren't deficient.

My 2c.

 

[Jon]

Boil water, pour the water in a coffee cup and stir in a couple scoops of brewer's yeast and let it sit for a bit.

As for its potency, I go by how I react with it and the taste - it has a bitterness similar to the dissolved b-powders so I know something is getting extracted. Actually, the flavor is somewhat reminiscent of haidtus b complex but nuttier.

As for ultra-exact science in my method, I don't have that answer.

For that matter, I think craving bitter foods like sourdough bread indicates b-vit deficiency. Same with coffee, chocolate.

I would take the empirical approach, and sip on the brewers yeast thing until you feel better. I think that is one advantage over throwing back pills everyday or counting macros for example, you have a better sense of what is going on when you can taste and react to how much you are taking. My guess is if you aren't digging the flavor, you aren't deficient.

My 2c.

Thanks man :)

 

[tara]

I would take the empirical approach, and sip on the brewers yeast thing until you feel better. I think that is one advantage over throwing back pills everyday or counting macros for example, you have a better sense of what is going on when you can taste and react to how much you are taking.

+1
Though I haven't tried this yet.
I had a bad reaction to brewers yeast many years ago, and haven't quite been game to try again - but I might yet.

 

[Lord Cola]

Has anyone found a solution with food only?
Peat recommends liver for some of the B vitamins but according to NCCDB data it doesn't contain much more of the vitamins than a few quarts of milk except for B3. So if these numbers are accurate, eating liver once or twice a week wouldn't make much difference for B vitamins intake if you drink a lot of milk already, and aren't suffering from a B3 deficiency.
What other safe and palatable food sources of B vitamins are there?

 

[Arnold Grape]

Has anyone found a solution with food only?
Peat recommends liver for some of the B vitamins but according to NCCDB data it doesn't contain much more of the vitamins than a few quarts of milk except for B3. So if these numbers are accurate, eating liver once or twice a week wouldn't make much difference for B vitamins intake if you drink a lot of milk already, and aren't suffering from a B3 deficiency.
What other safe and palatable food sources of B vitamins are there?

This is not Peat-ish, but cauliflower is a good source of b-6. Liver, as noted, but probably grass fed beef or eggs. For some reason I cannot tolerate the nutritional yeast products that I have tried, either.

 

[Kray]

Boil water, pour the water in a coffee cup and stir in a couple scoops of brewer's yeast and let it sit for a bit.

As for its potency, I go by how I react with it and the taste - it has a bitterness similar to the dissolved b-powders so I know something is getting extracted. Actually, the flavor is somewhat reminiscent of haidtus b complex but nuttier.

As for ultra-exact science in my method, I don't have that answer.

For that matter, I think craving bitter foods like sourdough bread indicates b-vit deficiency. Same with coffee, chocolate.

I would take the empirical approach, and sip on the brewers yeast thing until you feel better. I think that is one advantage over throwing back pills everyday or counting macros for example, you have a better sense of what is going on when you can taste and react to how much you are taking. My guess is if you aren't digging the flavor, you aren't deficient.

My 2c.

@kyle
Revisiting this thread this morning. To follow up, I didn't stick with the nutritional yeast for long. Mostly didn't remember to include it in my daily regimen (easy to do). I haven't ff on this thread to see if it ever came up, but I was looking at nutritional yeast again and found this- a brewer's yeast--- made with beet molasses, not grain.

My question is-- would this not be estrogenic, given its source (sugar), as opposed to grains? What do you think of the B profile given on the label? I haven't compared the breakdown to other brands of either kind of yeast, but it covers the basic Bs, is low in iron, not as high in chromium as grain-fed BY. Would like your take. Also, anyone from the thread using BY or NY as a B supplement these days? Thanks ahead for any feedback.

Bluebonnet Nutrition, Super Earth Brewer's Yeast, Unflavored, 2 lb (908 g)

www.iherb.com

 

[kyle]

The tea method is meant to dissolve the b vitamins in the water and minimize any junk. I can't speak to different brand qualities, I used Solgar though.

b vitamins are better utilized and aren't as rapidly depleted when the body is healthy. The vitamins can also help move the metabolism in a good direction for that to happen. For that reason, I've come to not put too much thought on what is on the % on the label if that makes sense. You might take a big dose only to piss it out an hour later.

That said, it might be a good place to start even if the RDA isn't as massive as we're used to seeing in studies or on pill bottles. That was a thought that crossed my mind when I first tried it, is it worth the trouble? The amounts didn't seem that high. In the end I found it helpful. Haven't used it in a while, but it's certainly something I consider a reasonable option for the B vitamins.

 

[Kray]

The tea method is meant to dissolve the b vitamins in the water and minimize any junk. I can't speak to different brand qualities, I used Solgar though.

b vitamins are better utilized and aren't as rapidly depleted when the body is healthy. The vitamins can also help move the metabolism in a good direction for that to happen. For that reason, I've come to not put too much thought on what is on the % on the label if that makes sense. You might take a big dose only to piss it out an hour later.

That said, it might be a good place to start even if the RDA isn't as massive as we're used to seeing in studies or on pill bottles. That was a thought that crossed my mind when I first tried it, is it worth the trouble? The amounts didn't seem that high. In the end I found it helpful. Haven't used it in a while, but it's certainly something I consider a reasonable option for the B vitamins.

Thanks for your feedback.

I agree with your observations that percentages don't mean everything, it's listening to your body, and how much is needed at any given time says a lot about your overall state of health. Which is why I am leaning more toward "less is more" approach in supplementing in general. While learning about food and physiology from a Peat perspective has been fascinating to me, I think sometimes too much emphasis is put on supplements rather than food. Even if one chooses a food-type vitamin B rather than a synthetic version, I need to remember "supplement" is not a meal.