B Strong
Referred to as vitamin B complex, the eight B vitamins — B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, B12 — play an important role in keeping our bodies running like well-oiled machines. While many of the following vitamins work in tandem, each has its own specific benefits — from promoting healthy skin and hair to memory retention or even helping with migraines. The water-soluble B vitamins have to be absorbed in the small intestine and then go to the liver, where they are biotransformed into their active coenzyme forms. What Vitamins Are In B Strong? Vitamin B1: Thiamine This vitamin is called thiamine, which helps support adrenal function and calms and maintains a healthy nervous system. Thiamin is a cofactor for the metabolism of carbohydrates into energy and plays a key role in nerve transmission. The best food sources include sunflower seeds, flax seeds, and navy and black beans. Soaking and sprouting these sources make the B1 more bioavailable to the body. The most bioactive form of supplemental thiamine is benfotiamine (S-benzoylthiamine O-monophosphate), a safe, fat-soluble analog of thiamine. One study showed that it not only raised blood and tissue levels of thiamine at least five times higher than the water-soluble salt, but it also remained bioavailable after oral administration up to 3.6 times longer than thiamine salt.[1] B Strong provides 20 mg of thiamine HCL and 20 mg of benfotiamine. Vitamin B2: Riboflavin This is riboflavin, which is a key part of many metabolic functions in the body. It is one of many nutrients required to recycle glutathione, which is one of the most important antioxidants in the human body. From a chemical standpoint, what B2 does is facilitate the conversion of oxidized glutathione into reduced glutathione. The best food sources include grass-fed raw cheese, almonds, grass-fed beef and lamb, oily fish such as salmon, and pasture-raised eggs. The best form of riboflavin is riboflavin 5’-phosphate sodium (R5P), which is the activated form that has the highest utilization rate in the body. B Strong contains 20 mg of R5P per serving. Vitamin B3: Niacin This is niacin, which is important in energy production. Two unique forms of vitamin B3 (called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD, and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, or NADP) are essential for the conversion of dietary proteins, fats, and carbohydrates into usable energy. Niacin is also used to synthesize starch that can be stored in muscles and the liver for eventual use as an energy source. The richest food sources are tuna, chicken, turkey, salmon, and grass-fed beef. B Strong contains 130 mg of niacinamide and 10 mg of niacin. Vitamin B5: Pantothenic Acid The most studied role of pantothenic acid in health support is its incorporation into a molecule called Coenzyme A (CoA). This molecule is arguably on the short list of the most important chemicals needed to sustain life. CoA occupies a central place in energy metabolism, acting to allow carbohydrates, fats, and proteins to be burned as fuel sources. B5 is also responsible for the production of sex and stress-related hormones, including testosterone. Studies show B5 also promotes healthy skin with the ability to reduce signs of skin aging, such as redness and skin spots. The best food sources include mushrooms, oily fish like salmon and trout, and grass-fed raw cheese. The most common way this is supplemented is a form called pyridoxine HCl. The best supplemental form is pyridoxal-5’phosphate (P5P). In patients receiving pyridoxine HCl, only 33 percent responded with an increase in plasma pyridoxal-5’-phosphate (P5P); however, the level increased in all of the patients receiving P5P (2). ***B Strong Contains the BioActive P5P Vitamin B6: Vitamin B6 assists in the balancing of sodium and potassium as well as promoting red blood cell production. It is linked to cardiovascular health by decreasing the formation of homocysteine. Pyridoxine helps balance hormonal changes in women and aids the immune system. Lack of pyridoxine may cause anemia, nerve damage, seizures, skin problems, and sores in the mouth. It is required for the production of major neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. This is why it is implicated in the treatment of depression and anxiety. Vitamin B7: Biotin Vitamin B7, more commonly known as biotin, helps support adrenal function, helps calm and maintain a healthy nervous system, and is necessary for key metabolic processes. Biotin is nicknamed “the beauty vitamin,” because of its association with healthy hair, skin, and nails. It may help people with diabetes control high blood glucose levels, too. This B vitamin is especially important during pregnancy because it’s vital for the normal growth of the baby. B Strong contains 400 mcg of Biotin per serving Vitamin B9: Folate Bioactive forms include folinic acid, calcium folinate, and methyl-folate. Never purchase folic acid! Synthetic folic acid supplements are not natural forms and can be very toxic for certain individuals. 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF) is the most active form of folate and is especially important for individuals with MTHFR gene mutations. Folate deficiency is believed to be the most common vitamin deficiency in the world due to food processing, food selection, genetic polymorphisms (MTHFR), and intestinal disorders. In this formula, 5-MTHF is provided as Quatrefolic—the glucosamine salt of 5-MTHF. In vitro and in vivo studies have proven that Quatrefolic has greater stability, solubility, and bioavailability over calcium salt forms of 5-MTHF. Folate is stored in small amounts in red blood cells (RBC), and RBC folate has been shown to be higher after supplementation with 5-MTHF compared to folic acid and placebo. Likewise, patients given 5 mg of 5-MTHF experienced plasma levels of 5-MTHF 700% greater than patients given folic acid (3). In B Strong, folate is provided as 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), which bypasses metabolic steps to folate bioactivity. This is the safest and most effective form. B Strong provides 400 mcg per serving. Vitamin B12: Always choose methyl-cobalamin and not cyanocobalamin. Methyl-Cobalamin is the most bioactive form of B12 that the body needs. This is essential for recycling homocysteine and the formation of methyl donors involved in cardiovascular function, sleep, blood cell formation, and nerve function. Most vitamin B12 supplements contain cyanocobalamin; however, the liver must first "detoxify" the cyanide molecule and attach a methyl group to form methylcobalamin from the cyanocobalamin. Methylcobalamin is already in the biologically active, tissue-ready form. Human urinary excretion of methylcobalamin is about one-third that of a similar dose of cyanocobalamin, indicating substantially greater tissue retention. B Strong contains 400 mcg of methylcobalamin Choline: Choline is utilized by the body in a variety of ways, including aiding nerve signaling, maintenance of cell membranes, transporting triglycerides from the liver, and as a constituent of nervous system tissues in early brain development. Choline is also a precursor of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter vital to nerve and muscle function, and a component of lecithin, which is critical to normal liver metabolism. Without adequate dietary intake of choline, there is a higher-than-normal risk of chronic liver damage and eventual liver failure. Choline is vital in forming very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) in the liver, which helps transport fat from that organ to cells throughout the body. Although VLDL is considered a "bad" form of cholesterol because high levels indicate an abundance of circulating triglycerides, if VLDL levels fall too low, fat will begin to accumulate in the liver. B Strong contains 30 mg of choline What Are The Benefits Of B Strong? B Strong™ contains the entire spectrum of B vitamins to support adrenal and neurological functions. It features activated forms of vitamins B2, B6, and B12; benfotiamine, a fat-soluble, more physiologically active form of thiamine; and folate as Quatrefolic®, which is proven to have greater stability, solubility, and bioavailability over calcium salt forms of 5-MTHF. What Is The Recommended Dosage? Normal Dosage: 1 capsule – 2x daily Advanced Dosage: 2 capsules – 2x daily When introducing a new supplement, we recommend taking the lowest dose for 2-3 days. As tolerated, increase the dose until you have reached the recommended normal or advanced guidelines. Reduce to a tolerable dosage if adverse effects occur. Sources Include: Loew D. Pharmacokinetics of thiamine derivatives especially of benfotiamine. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. 1996 Feb;34(2): 47-50. [PMID: 8929745] Labadarios D, Rossouw JE, McConnell JB, et al. Vitamin B6 deficiency in chronic liver disease – evidence for increased degradation of pyridoxal-5-phosphate. Gut. 1977;18:23-27. [PMID: 838399] Willems FF, Boers GH, Blom HJ, et al. Pharmacokinetic study on the utilization of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and folic acid in patients with coronary artery disease. Br J Pharmacol. 2004 Mar;41(5):825-30. [PMID: 14769778]