Impact Of Inadequate Status Of Vitamins And Minerals On Physical Fatigue
Frank deficiencies in most vitamins and minerals have been associated with lethargy or physical fatigue, which can also be observed in marginal deficiencies, but these symptoms are often missed because they are nonspecific.
6.1.1. Inadequate Status of Individual B Vitamins and Physical Fatigue
Beriberi, the disease resulting from severe thiamine deficiency affects several organs, including the muscular and peripheral nervous systems . General symptoms include fatigue, ataxia due to muscle weakness in the legs and arms, muscle pain and tenderness, and dyspnoea on exertion.
Riboflavin deficiency is most often accompanied by other nutrient deficiencies and it is thus difficult to clearly identify specific symptoms. Anemia, a condition related to fatigue, is associated with low riboflavin status. For example, in 1253 adult Chinese individuals followed for 5 years, more than 97% had inadequate riboflavin intake at baseline and this was associated with an increased risk of anemia at follow-up . High rates of marginal and deficient riboflavin status have been found in healthy women from both Canada and Malaysia and were indicative of a higher risk of anemia , which enhances the risk of associated fatigue symptoms.
Inadequate niacin intakes or status lead to nonspecific clinical symptoms and include weakness, loss of appetite, fatigue and apathy .
6.1.2. Inadequate Status in Vitamin C and Physical Fatigue
Surprising Ways To Get More Energy Including Stress Relief And Healthy Eating
Go to the store, and you’ll see a multitude of vitamins, herbs, and other supplements touted as energy boosters. Some are even added to soft drinks and other foods. But there’s little or no scientific evidence that energy boosters like ginseng, guarana, and chromium picolinate actually work. Thankfully, there are things you can do to enhance your own natural energy levels. Here are nine tips:
1. Control stress
Stress-induced emotions consume huge amounts of energy. Talking with a friend or relative, joining a support group, or seeing a psychotherapist can all help diffuse stress. Relaxation therapies like meditation, self-hypnosis, yoga, and tai chi are also effective tools for reducing stress.
2. Lighten your load
One of the main reasons for fatigue is overwork. Overwork can include professional, family, and social obligations. Try to streamline your list of “must-do” activities. Set your priorities in terms of the most important tasks. Pare down those that are less important. Consider asking for extra help at work, if necessary.
3. Exercise
Exercise almost guarantees that you’ll sleep more soundly. It also gives your cells more energy to burn and circulates oxygen. And exercising can lead to higher brain dopamine levels, which helps elevate mood. When walking, pick up the pace periodically to get extra health benefits.
4. Avoid smoking
5. Restrict your sleep
6. Eat for energy
7. Use caffeine to your advantage
8. Limit alcohol
9. Drink water
Taking An Integrated Approach To Energy
Because there are inter-related factors influencing our energy, like so many problems in life, its important to take an integrated viewpoint. Meaning if youre suffering from chronic fatigue and expect some energy pill to be your solution, youre bound to be disappointed.
I dont care what the solution is, if its not grounded in a comprehensive protocol, it will fail. You might get an energy boost, but it will be momentary, and the benefit will fall off over time because of the process of habituation.
Energy supplements are best approached from a holistic perspective, where they are part of a protocol, but not held as a panacea.
So to get the best results from energy supplements, make sure youre doing other things to support your energy and stop doing things that are leaking energy. I provide resources at the end of this guide to help you develop a comprehensive approach.
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Two Classes Of Energy Vitamins & Supplements
Supplements for energy can fall into two categories:
You are a random sample of one, meaning what works for one person may or may not work for you. Many people in the biohacking community take a scientific approach, performing blood tests and other analyses to understand their biochemistry. If this approach speaks to you, by all means, go for it. But for this general guide, Im going to address common deficiencies that you can experiment with on your own.
Vitamins, minerals, and hormones many individuals have deficiencies in that can lead to chronic fatigue and lethargy include:
- Shilajit
Supplements can directly influence your energy level include:
- Neurohackers Qualia Energy
- Pine Pollen
- Rhodiola Rosea
Lets go through each of the best energy supplements and look at what the research tells us.
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The B vitamins play essential roles in the complex biochemical machinery that breaks glucose into ATP, releasing energy from the food we eat. In that way, B vitamins make it possible for your body to use energy but they dont contain energy.
If you are deficient in B vitamins , this can affect your energy levels. But so can other things, including lack of sleep. If you have adequate B-vitamin levels but pop a supplement anyway, you wont gain extra energy. Your body will simply excrete the excess in your urine. Dont waste your money.
Another problem with taking nutrients in supplement form is that they often work closely together, and levels of one vitamin affect how another vitamin works. For example, if Vitamin X relies on Vitamin Y, but you have a lot of X and not enough Y, its as if you have too little of both.
This is especially true with the B vitamins, which are highly dependent on each other. Yet, its common for B-complex supplements to contain 50 milligrams of each individual vitamin. That means it has 3,333 percent of the thiamin you need each day, but only 17 percent of the biotin. The potential imbalance could be even greater if you take supplements of a single B vitamin.
The eight B vitamins thiamin , riboflavin , niacin , pantothenic acid , pyridoxine , biotin , B12 and folic acid are often found in the same foods.
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The Bottom Line B Is Good For Energy
The truth is, the eight B vitamins contribute in a unique way to metabolism. The more efficient the metabolism, the more efficient the energy. Vitamins like B5 and B6 work together. B12 is energy-boosting along with B6. Pharmacists and doctors often suggest a high-quality B-complex supplement. A B-complex supplement provides the daily recommended B vitamins in a single dosage.
Using Vitamins To Increase Energy Sharpen Focus And Decrease Tiredness
The vitamins listed above are more than capable of fixing fatigue, boosting energy levels, and promoting overall good health. But using just one of them is probably not going to make much of a difference to your energy on a day-to-day basis. You will not be able to tell which vitamin you are really lacking, and they all have quite small effects in the grand scheme of things.
The best way to use vitamins to increase energy levels is to use a supplement stack which contains several vitamins as well as other natural energy boosters.
This means you will be attacking tiredness on all fronts, which significantly increases your chances of success. Whats more, using multiple vitamins known to boost energy and decrease tiredness at the same time will give you results far greater than you get from the sum of the individual ingredients.
To learn more about the best energy supplements on sale right now, check out our natural energy supplement buying guide: .
To learn more about natural stimulants, see our Adderall alternatives page: .
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Micronutrients With A Big Role In The Body
Vitamins and minerals are often called micronutrients because your body needs only tiny amounts of them. Yet failing to get even those small quantities virtually guarantees disease. Here are a few examples of diseases that can result from vitamin deficiencies:
- Scurvy. Old-time sailors learned that living for months without fresh fruits or vegetablesthe main sources of vitamin Ccauses the bleeding gums and listlessness of scurvy.
- Blindness. In some developing countries, people still become blind from vitamin A deficiency.
- Rickets. A deficiency in vitamin D can cause rickets, a condition marked by soft, weak bones that can lead to skeletal deformities such as bowed legs. Partly to combat rickets, the U.S. has fortified milk with vitamin D since the 1930s.
Just as a lack of key micronutrients can cause substantial harm to your body, getting sufficient quantities can provide a substantial benefit. Some examples of these benefits:
- Strong bones. A combination of calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K, magnesium, and phosphorus protects your bones against fractures.
- Prevents birth defects. Taking folic acid supplements early in pregnancy helps prevent brain and spinal birth defects in offspring.
- Healthy teeth. The mineral fluoride not only helps bone formation but also keeps dental cavities from starting or worsening.
Whats In Focus & Energy
Focus & Energy also contains three highly concentrated plant adaptogens:
- Ashwagandha is an Ayurvedic medicinal revered over thousands of years for its mental sharpening benefits. Modern clinical research reveals it is also superb for coping with stress and occasional anxiety.
- Rhodiola thrives in the most extreme Siberian climates and is a favorite in the East. This concentrate is doubly standardized and has shown strong anti-stress benefits in clinical trials.
- Asian ginseng leads all other ginsengs for its almost immediate mental focus benefits. This concentrate is loaded with 15% brain-active ginsenosides and has been subjected to intensive research, with excellent results.
Focus & Energy is formulated specifically to reinforce the brain and bodys ability to fight fatigue and adapt to stress. It also contains choline, a vitamin-like nutrient that helps the brain make the key transmitter acetylcholine and has other metabolic pathways that promote endurance and vigor. Choline is so important it now has a Daily Value nutrient requirement set by the FDA.
To be successful in todays world, you need a clear mind and sharp focus. Brain Boost On The Go and Focus & Energy are two of the best ways to help you achieve your goals. At BrainMD, were dedicated to providing the highest purity nutrients to give you the attention, focus, and energy you need to do the things you love.
For more information about our full list of supplements, please visit us at BrainMD.
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Stress Depression And Anxiety
Some vitamin and omega-3 fatty acid deficiencies can lead to emotional disturbances. However, if you are feeling run down, it is more likely to be due to stress, depression or unhealthy lifestyle habits , rather than a vitamin deficiency.
Feeling under pressure doesnt automatically lead to a vitamin deficiency, so taking a vitamin supplement wont necessarily make the stressful feelings go away. More serious mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, arent caused or prevented by vitamins, although a healthy diet can help support a person to better cope with their condition.
Impact Of Vitamins And Minerals Frank Deficiencies On Mental Fatigue And Cognitive Or Psychological Functions
7.1.1. Deficiencies in Individual B Vitamins and Mental Fatigue and Cognitive or Psychological Functions
Long-term niacin deficiency can lead to neurological symptoms, including depression and loss of memory . These symptoms attenuate or disappear following niacin intake, confirming its role in the brain and nervous system . In addition, niacin receptors, which are normally distributed throughout the brain, are affected in several brain areas in people with Parkinson disease quoted in .
Deficiency in pantothenic acid results in neurological dysfunction. Dogs treated with an antagonist of vitamin B5 that induces a deficiency of pantothenic acid developed an acute encephalopathy . In humans, there is a rare genetic defect in the production of pantothenate kinase, an enzyme that is crucial in the synthesis of acetyl-CoA, which translates into inherited neurodegenerative diseases or neurodegeneration . Experimentally induced deficiency in pantothenic acid results in personality changes .
During severe pyridoxine deficiency, disturbed neurologic functions, such as convulsive epileptic seizures and irritability and depression, are observed .
7.1.2. Deficiency in Vitamin C and Minerals and Mental Fatigue and Cognitive or Psychological Functions
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Continue Learning About Energy Boosters
Important: This content reflects information from various individuals and organizations and may offer alternative or opposing points of view. It should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As always, you should consult with your healthcare provider about your specific health needs.
Interactingin Good Ways And Bad
Many micronutrients interact. Vitamin D enables your body to pluck calcium from food sources passing through your digestive tract rather than harvesting it from your bones. Vitamin C helps you absorb iron.
The interplay of micronutrients isnt always cooperative, however. For example, vitamin C blocks your bodys ability to assimilate the essential mineral copper. And even a minor overload of the mineral manganese can worsen iron deficiency.
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B Vitamins And Energy Drinks
Even though energy drink manufacturers often boast about the high content of B vitamins in their products, these nutrients aren’t necessarily what boosts your energy. Usually, the increase in energy comes from the drink’s caffeine.
Well-known brands of energy drinks contain anywhere from 71 milligrams of caffeine per can to as much as 242 milligrams. By comparison, four single espressos deliver 252 milligrams of caffeine, and few people ever dream of drinking that much in one sitting.
If you experience a boost of energy after drinking an energy drink, take a look at the product label. More likely than not, you’ll find caffeine as one of the main ingredients.
Does Vitamin B6 Give You Energy
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. Also know, does vitamin b6 make you sleepy?
A vitamin B6 deficiency can leave you feeling unusually tired and sluggish. A big reason is vitamin B6’s role in helping make hemoglobin. Besides feeling tired from anemia, B6 deficiency could also potentially contribute to tiredness due to its role in making the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin .
Also, which B vitamin gives you the most energy? Vitamin B12Along with the other B vitamins, vitamin B12 helps transform the food you eat into energy that your cells can use. It also keeps your body’s nerves and blood cells healthy and helps prevent a type of anemia that can make you weak and tired .
In this regard, what does vitamin b6 do for you?
Together the complex of eight B vitamins are important for metabolism, brain and liver function, growth, and building blood cells, as well as for maintaining healthy hair, skin, and vision. Vitamin B6 also helps the body make melatonin, which is important in helping regulate your internal clock and your sleep.
What are the side effects of taking b6?
Common Side Effects of Vitamin B6
- Sleepiness.
- Tingling, burning, or prickling sensation in the hands and feet.
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The Common Cold And Vitamin C
Many people think that vitamin C helps prevent the common cold. Despite exhaustive research across the world, there is still no strong evidence to prove this. Some studies have shown that taking large doses of vitamin C continuously or when you first develop cold symptoms, may ease some of the symptoms and the duration on average, making it about half a day shorter. It does not prevent you catching a cold.
You also need to consider the health risks associated with taking large doses of vitamin C. Large doses may cause nausea, abdominal cramps, headaches, fatigue, kidney stones and diarrhoea. It may also interfere with your bodys ability to process other nutrients, for example, it could lead to dangerously raised levels of iron.
Excessive amounts of vitamin C in the body can also interfere with medical tests, such as diabetes tests, giving a false result.
Adults need about 45 mg of vitamin C per day and any excess amount is excreted.
Ways To Get Rid Of Chronic Fatigue
Although there is no cure for chronic fatigue, you can take certain steps to help manage your symptoms and feel better.
Making lifestyle changes is often the first step to getting rid of chronic fatigue. This may involve following healthy sleeping habits, limiting stress in your life, exercising regularly, and maintaining a balanced diet. These steps alone can make you look and feel healthier without needing any extra supplements or medications.
Many people take energy supplements to reduce their chronic fatigue when lifestyle changes arent enough. These supplements often contain the same nutrients you need to produce energy in your body, such as B-vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, and minerals.
While supplements can provide you with the energy you need to complete daily tasks and live your life, its important to buy a supplement that is pure and doesnt contain any harmful ingredients. Be sure to read the label carefully, so you know what youre getting before buying anything.
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Where To Buy Vitamins For Tiredness And Fatigue
Vitamins for tiredness and fatigue are vastly available in a variety of healthcare and supplement brands in the UK. We always advise opting for brands that have a reputable name in the health and supplement industry to ensure you are putting the highest quality products into your body.
Health stores such as Holland and Barrett are a great place to look as they possess a leading name for supplements in the UK health market and offer a whole host of options when it comes to vitamins for fatigue.
Nature’s Best have built a respectable reputation within the vitamin industry. They are very selective about what they will and wont stock for instance, they emphasise their exclusion of any products featuring endangered herbs, goldenseal, libido boosters, emu oil and many more potentially unethical products.
Alternatively, online retailer Amazon is also a reputable name for vitamins for fatigue it offers a huge variety of brands of products at competitive prices. However, it is worth noting that Amazon themselves stress the importance of only buying from verified manufacturers on the site who possess a detailed manufacturer profile.
