Category

• Nutritional supplement, vitamin

Description

Vitamins (VYE-ta-mins) are compounds that you must have for growth and health. They are needed in small amounts only and are usually available in the foods that you eat. Thiamine (THYE-a-min) (vitamin B 1) is needed for the breakdown of carbohydrates.

Some conditions may increase your need for thiamine. These include:

• Alcoholism
• Burns
• Diarrhea (continuing)
• Fever (continuing)
• Illness (continuing)
• Intestinal disease
• Liver disease
• Overactive thyroid
• Stress (continuing)
• Surgical removal of stomach

Also, the following groups of people may have a deficiency of thiamine:

• Patients using an artificial kidney (on hemodialysis)
• Individuals who do heavy manual labor on a daily basis

Increased need for thiamine should be determined by your health care professional.

Lack of thiamine may lead to a condition called beriberi. Signs of beriberi include loss of appetite, constipation, muscle weakness, pain or tingling in arms or legs, and possible swelling of feet or lower legs. In addition, if severe, lack of thiamine may cause mental depression, memory problems, weakness, shortness of breath, and fast heartbeat. Your health care professional may treat this by prescribing thiamine for you.

Thiamine may also be used for other conditions as determined by your health care professional.

Claims that thiamine is effective for treatment of skin problems, chronic diarrhea, tiredness, mental problems, multiple sclerosis, nerve problems, and ulcerative colitis (a disease of the intestines), or as an insect repellant or to stimulate appetite have not been proven.

Injectable thiamine is administered only by or under the supervision of your health care professional. Other forms of thiamine are available without a prescription.

Thiamine is available in the following dosage forms:

Oral
• Elixir (Canada)
• Tablets (U.S. and Canada)

Parenteral
• Injection (U.S. and Canada)

Importance of Diet

Thiamine is found in various foods, including cereals (whole-grain and enriched), peas, beans, nuts, and meats (especially pork and beef). Some thiamine in foods is lost with cooking.

Vitamins alone will not take the place of a good diet and will not provide energy. Your body also needs other substances found in food such as protein, minerals, carbohydrates, and fat. Vitamins themselves often cannot work without the presence of other foods.

The daily amount of thiamine needed is defined in several different ways.

For U.S.—
• Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) are the amount of vitamins and minerals needed to provide for adequate nutrition in most healthy persons. RDAs for a given nutrient may vary depending on a person's age, sex, and physical condition (e.g., pregnancy).
• Daily Values (DVs) are used on food and dietary supplement labels to indicate the percent of the recommended daily amount of each nutrient that a serving provides. DV replaces the previous designation of United States Recommended Daily Allowances (USRDAs).

For Canada—
• Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNIs) are used to determine the amounts of vitamins, minerals, and protein needed to provide adequate nutrition and lessen the risk of chronic disease.

Normal daily recommended intakes in milligrams (mg) for thiamine are generally defined as follows:

Persons	U.S. (mg)	Canada (mg)
Infants and children Birth to 3 years of age	0.3-0.7	0.3-0.6
4 to 6 years of age	0.9	0.7
7 to 10 years of age	1	0.8-1
Adolescent and adult males	1.2-1.5	0.8-1.3
Adolescent and adult females	1-1.1	0.8-0.9
Pregnant females	1.5	0.9-1
Breast-feeding females	1.6	1-1.2

Brand Names

Some commonly used brand names are:

In the U.S.—

• Biamine

In Canada—

• Betaxin
• Bewon

Generic name product may be available in the U.S. and Canada.