RDI
Overdosing
Conception, pregnancy and breastfeeding
Food sources
Vitamin B1 is a water-soluble vitamin, also known as 'thiamine'. Thiamine is needed for the effective energy metabolism of carbohydrate foods to supply energy to your body tissues and organs, as well as facilitating normal nerve functioning. Not having enough thiamine in your body can lead to muscle wasting, weight loss, tiredness, memory loss, confusion, irritability and a disease called 'Beriberi', leading to nerve and heart damage. Thiamine deficiency is usually only seen in developing countries.
Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)of thiamine (or vitamin B1) is about 1milligram (mg) for adults and 0.8mg for children. The average daily diet of people in developed countries usually meets or exceeds this recommended intake.
Overdosing.There is no evidence that you can overdose on thiamine, although only recommended intakes are advisable and supplementing is generally not required because thiamine is readily available through a normal or vegetarian diet.
Conception, pregnancy and breastfeeding.Thiamine contributes to the growth and functioning of your baby's body organs and nervous system. The recommended intake of thiamine during pregnancy is more around 1.5mg per day. This is because of the woman's increased metabolism and energy needs. However, supplementing with thiamine is not required because adequate amounts are available through diet alone.
Food sources.Thiamine is available from whole grain bread, cereals, oatmeal, wheat germ, rice, spaghetti, flour, yeast, nuts, kidney beans, pulses, peas, spinach, tomato juice, watermelon, Soymilk, ham, pork and steak. Thiamine is nearly completely removed in refined and processed foods and can be destroyed at very high temperatures, dissolving into cooking water.