Riboflavin (Vit. B2) - what is it?
Riboflavin, New RDA* 1.4 mg
Riboflavin is water-soluble, which means you need it in your diet every day because it can't be stored in the body.
Riboflavin is present as an essential constituent of all living cells, and is therefore widely distributed in small amounts in foods.
*Sourced from EFSA WEBSITE
Riboflavin - what does it do?
Releases energy from carbohydrate, protein and fat.
It is also involved in the transport and metabolism of iron in the body and is needed for the normal structure and functioning of the skin and body linings.
Clinically, Riboflavin promotes normal growth and assists in the synthesis of steroids, red blood cells, and glycogen. FAD also play a role in oxidation-reduction reactions, interacting with a group of enzymes known as flavoproteins.
Riboflavin helps to maintain the integrity of mucous membranes, skin, eyes and the nervous system. It supports the activity of antioxidants and is involved in the production of adrenaline by the adrenal glands. It is thought that riboflavin also aids the body in absorbing iron, since it is common for iron deficiency to accompany a deficiency in riboflavin.
Deficiency
Individuals who have inadequate food intake are at risk of deficiency, particularly children in developing countries. Other groups prone to riboflavin deficiency include older people with poor diet, chronic ‘dieters’, patients taking tranquillisers, persons who use fibre-based laxatives regularly, patients with hypothyroidism and women who exercise excessively.
Riboflavin deficiency may arise in neonates during phototherapy for jaundice. It has also been associated with the development of cataracts and of rheumatoid arthritis. Riboflavin deficiency may occur as a result of inadequate nutrition or intestinal malabsorption. Riboflavin status can markedly influence the activity of hepatic microsomal drug metabolising enzymes.
Deficiency signs and symptoms include dry and cracked skin, sensitivity to bright light, itching, dizziness, insomnia, slow learning, weakness, sore throat, hyperaemia and oedema of the pharyngeal and oral mucous membranes, cheilosis, angular stomatitis, glossitis, seborrhoeic dermatitis, corneal vascularisation and anaemia associated with pure red cell hypoplasia of the bone marrow. The anaemia that develops in riboflavin deficiency is normochromic and normocytic and is associated with reticulocytopenia; leukocytes and platelets are generally normal. Administration of riboflavin to deficient patients causes reticulocytosis, and the concentration of haemoglobin returns to normal
Riboflavin - Sources
Milk, eggs, rice, fortified breakfast cereals, liver, legumes, mushrooms and green vegetables.
