Are you missing these 8 essential vitamins? Nutritionists explain what to eat
- Kat Storr
Published: October 30, 2026 at 12:09 PM
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Can you name all eight of these essential vitamins?
Our bodies need a range of vitamins and minerals to keep our blood cells, hormones and immune, nervous and cardiovascular systems healthy and working properly. But with the supplement market continuing to expand rapidly, it can be easy to lose sight of what these nutrients actually do to our bodies, and where we could find them naturally in the foods we eat every day.
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There is one set of nutrients that you might be overlooking. B vitamins are a group of essential nutrients that help our bodies carry out a number of key processes. The amount of them we need will vary according to our age, diet, general health and life stage but specialist dietitian Nichola Ludlam-Raine explains that “collectively, they help the body release energy from food, make and maintain red blood cells, support the nervous system and help with DNA production and cell growth”.
A balanced diet will provide most B vitamins but, as with many nutrients, we won’t know if we’re deficient in them until our body starts giving us signals. “If you feel wiped out despite sleeping well, foggy-brained, flat, anxious or inflamed, deficiency of the B family is often one possible explanation,” says Tina Hancocks, a registered nutritional therapist and ambassador to Wiley's Finest fish oils.
There are eight B vitamins our bodies need, but you could probably only name one or two if you were put to the test. Most people are familiar with folate (and folic acid) and maybe B12, but what about the rest? We’ve spoken to dietitians and nutrition experts to find more about B vitamins and why we need them to stay healthy in the short and long-term.
What are the eight B vitamins?
B1 or thiamin
Vitamin B1 helps our body break down and release energy from the food we eat and is an important nutrient for our nervous system. It’s a vitamin we can usually get plenty of through our diet alone because it’s found in foods like peas, bananas, nuts, wholegrain cereals and fortified cereals.
B2 or riboflavin
Vitamin B2 is an essential nutrient for keeping our eyes, skin and nervous system healthy. It’s found in foods many of us eat daily such as milk, eggs, fortified breakfast cereals, plain yogurt and mushrooms. UV light can destroy riboflavin so foods containing it should always be kept out of direct sunlight.
B3 or niacin
Niacin is another B vitamin which helps our body release energy and keeps our nervous system and skin healthy. Foods like meat, fish, eggs and wheat flour contain two types of vitamin B3: nicotinic acid and nicotinamide. Supplements for this vitamin aren’t usually necessary and the NHS warns that if you take too much nicotinic acid for too long it can lead to skin flushes and liver damage.
B5 or pantothenic acid
Pantothenic acid is found in most vegetables and it helps our body release energy from food. Some breakfast cereals are fortified with it, but other sources include chicken, beef, eggs, mushrooms and avocado.
B6 or pyridoxine
This important mineral helps our body use and store energy from the protein and carbohydrates we eat. It also helps us form haemoglobin which our red blood cells need to carry oxygen around our body. It’s found in a lot of foods such as soya beans, poultry, pork, oats, bananas, milk and peanuts.
Most of us should be able to eat the required amount of B6 but if you’ve been advised to take a supplement, make sure you don’t exceed 10mg a day. Taking too much can lead to a medical condition called peripheral neuropathy which is where you lose the feeling in your arms and legs.
B7 or biotin
Biotin is found in a lot of the foods we’ve already mentioned but our body only needs a small amount of it to help make fatty acids and the keratin needed for healthy hair and nails. The bacteria in our bowel can also make it so supplements aren’t generally recommended. If you are taking one, make sure it doesn’t exceed 0.9mg a day. It’s also found in foods like eggs, salmon, meat, nuts, legumes and sweet potatoes.
B9 folate/folic acid
Folate is one of the most well-known B vitamins and women who are trying for a baby or in their first trimester are advised to take a supplement daily. It helps our body make red blood cells and reduces the risk of neural tube defects, which can cause conditions such as spina bifida in unborn babies. It can also lead to folate deficiency anaemia. We need around 200μg (200 micrograms) a day but if you’re pregnant it’s recommended you take 400μg a day until you reach 12 weeks.
Folate is also found in a lot of foods such as broccoli, cabbage, kale, spinach, peas, chickpeas, kidney beans and fortified cereals.
B12 or cobalamin
Vitamin B12 has a few important functions in our body. It helps us make red blood cells, use folate and release energy from food. It’s found in meat, fish, eggs, milk and cheese but Ludlam-Raine says vegans or vegetarians should eat “reliable fortified foods such as Alpro soya milk” or take a B12 supplement.
A lack of this vitamin can cause B12 deficiency anaemia which can cause extreme tiredness, mouth ulcers, weak muscles and vision problems. A blood test will be able to tell you if you’re deficient and need treatment with either a B12 injection or tablets.
Think ‘food first’
As you can see from above, we can get most of the B vitamins we need from our diet. However, Priya Tew, a specialist dietitian at Dietitian UK, reminds us that they need topping up every day because they’re water soluble which means our body can’t store them.
Hancocks says while a balanced diet, high in whole foods and leafy greens, covers most B vitamins, “modern life throws plenty of spanners in the works”. “Ultra-processed food, chronic stress, alcohol, certain medications (metformin for diabetes, PPIs for reflux, the pill), gut imbalances and plant-based diets can all create gaps.”
The two key B vitamins to keep an eye on are folate and B12 – the ones people most commonly take as a supplement. B12 is especially important for vegans because it’s not available in plant-based foods. Tew explains that older adults may also need a B12 supplement because “stomach acid production often falls with age, and this reduces how well B12 is absorbed from food”. However, it’s possible to overdose on B vitamins so you should always speak to a doctor before taking anything new. Tew says it’s also important to “eat regularly and enough. Skipping meals or restricting your diet will not help”.
When it comes to perimenopause, the experts say there’s no evidence that women need to consume more B vitamins. “They’re needed for normal body functions, and correcting a deficiency, but that’s different from evidence that extra B vitamins relieve perimenopause,” says Ludlam-Raine. “Be cautious with high-dose products marketed for hormones or energy, particularly those containing high levels of vitamin B6.”
If you have any questions or concerns about your diet and health you should always speak to your GP who will be able to give you the appropriate advice.
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Kat Storr
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