Vitamins and minerals are essential for the healthy growth and development of our body. Vitamins do different jobs in our body like resisting infections, keeping nerves healthy, strengthening bones, boosting the immune system, energizing the body, etc. To work properly your body needs vitamins. You can’t make most of them, so you get them from your diet. One exception is vitamin D, which we make when our skin interacts with sunlight.
No matter how healthy the diet you are taking, it can be difficult for you to meet the nutrient requirements of your body from food. Every diet has gaps and apart from your diet your current life, age, gender and genetic variations also play a major role in keeping you healthy. All vitamins are important but water-soluble is extremely vital. They are found in plenty of foods. One of the most essential vitamins is Vitamin B9, which is also known as Folate or Folic Acid. Let’s discuss more this ultimate vitamin called B9.
What is vitamin B9?.
Vitamin B9 also known as Folic Acid is a water-soluble vitamin that supports many important functions in our body. Just like other B vitamins, it also converts food into simpler and easy-to-digest form, i.e., glucose, which is essential for energy production. Vitamin B9 also supports your brain functions and uplift your mental health. Folic acid as the synthetic, chemical form of vitamin B9 that is commonly found in the diet, converted into a metabolically active form. This conversion happens mainly in the liver, which converts folic acid in tetrahydrofolate with the dihydrofolate reductase enzyme. Although folate and folic acid are frequently used in synonymous terms, both are distinct vitamins. There is a structural variation between synthesized folic acid and the folate. Both are considered to supply the sufficient nutritious intake. A variety of foods, including spinach, cale, broccoli, avocados, citrus fruits, eggs and liver beef, contain folate. Folic acid, by comparison, is available in ingredients such as flour, ready-to-eat cereals and bread. Folic acid is also sold in dietary supplements in a concentrated form.
Why vitamin B9 is essential?.
Vitamin B9 is essential because it manages a wide range of functions in your body, like –
1. Vitamin B9 allows the body to develop healthy red and white blood cells. If the body doesn’t produce enough of red and white blood cells, anaemia, which causes tiredness, fatigue and pale complexion may occur.
2. A individual can also develop anaemia known as folate deficiency anaemia due to inadequate consumption of Vitamin B9.
3. For the synthesis and repair of DNA and other genetic material, Vitamin B9 is essential.
4. Especially during pregnancy, it is important to have enough Vitamin B9. Vitamin B9 deficiency during pregnancy can lead to neural tube irregularities, such as spina bifida and anencephaly. Vitamin B9 participates in the synthesis of DNA and RNA, which is very critical during fast-growing times like puberty and pregnancy.
Vitamin B9 also facilitates the synthesis and conversion of many enzymatic reactions of nucleic acid, amino acid and functions as a cofactor. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends that suppliers in the United States add folic acid in enriched bread, pasta, rice and corn. The number of infants born with neural tube irregularities has declined after they adopted it. So, Vitamin B9 is highly important for your body. Without it, your body can’t perform essential functions.
What deficiency of Vitamin B9 may cause?.
If you are not consuming enough of vitamin B9, you might experience multiple body issues due to its deficiency. Although deficiency of Vitamin B9 is rare in developing nations, but in case you are alcoholic, feeding mother, pregnancy, in your periods, then you might experience its deficiency. Following is the list of problems that occur due to the deficiency of Vitamin B9.
Diarrhoea
Glossitis
Confusion
Foetal Neural Tube
Brain Defects
Fatigue
Mouth Sores
Poor Growth
Grey Hair
Swollen Tongue
Mouth ulcers
Peptic ulcer
Poor growth
Severe deficiency symptoms of Vitamin B9 are –
Loss Of Appetite
Irritable Mood
Weakness
Fatigue
Irregular Heartbeat
Shortness Of Breath
Depression
Low Bone Density
Problems With Memory
Difficulty In Concentrating
What are the best sources of Vitamin B9?
Water-soluble vitamins are produced in our body in a very less quantity, hence we depend on food and supplements to fulfill our needs for water-soluble vitamins. Mother nature has blessed us with a huge amount of fruits and vegetables that are loaded with Vitamin B9. Fruit sources of Vitamin B9 are avocado, papaya, kiwi and orange. Grain products include pasta, bagel and bread have Vitamin B9 in adequate quantity. Nuts and seeds include peanuts, soy seeds and sunflower seeds are rich in Vitamin B9. You can also consume breakfast cereals, cakes, cookies, cornmeal, crackers, etc. to fulfill your body’s need for Vitamin B9. Vitamin B9 available in high quantity in egg yolk, baker’s yeast, milk, salmon, and meat. Vegetable sources of Vitamin B9 are asparagus, spinach, kale, beets, broccoli, arugula, etc. There are also Vitamin B9 supplements available in the market. You can consume Vitamin B9 supplements to fulfil the need of Vitamin B9 in your body.
What if we start consuming enough of Vitamin B9?.
There are a lot of benefits that your body will gain if you consume enough of Vitamin B9 and these are –
Prevention of birth defects and pregnancy complications.
Vitamin B9 is strongly advised to pregnant women because it helps prevent the foetus from developing major congenital deformities of the brain or spine. spina bifida and anencephaly are birth deformities that occur due to deficiency of Vitamin B9. It also prevents women from pregnancy-related complications including preeclampsia.
Improving the cognitive functioning of the brain.
The functional activity of the brain relies mainly on vitamin B9. It helps in brain cell regeneration and enhancement of memory and attention. It also relieves signs of mental disorders such as schizophrenia, hallucinations, etc. The stable working of neural cells is impaired by a rise in homocysteine levels in the blood. A powerful intake of folic acid or Vitamin B9 decreases the amount of homocysteine and thereby increases cognitive behaviour and avoids disorders such as Alzheimer’s. It is very important for neurotransmitter production that helps the brain manage mood changes and also reduces stress, anxiety, pain and tiredness. It also reduces the risk of depression in people.
Maintaining a healthy heart.
Regular folic acid intakes demonstrated a decline in blood homocysteine levels, which can increase the chance of heart ailments and artery hardening, i.e. atherosclerosis. The consumption of foods that are rich in vitamin B9 has shown a substantial decline in cardiac blocks and strokes.
Final words.
If you are pregnant or suffering from any mental disorder, then we’d recommend you to increase your Vitamin B9 intake as it will help you prevent many issues that might cause problems later on.