Tag: Vitamin

Vitamin B12 as the Ultimate Wingman – Book Excerpt of the Week

Vitamin B12 as the Ultimate Wingman – Book Excerpt of the Week

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Vitamin B12 is the Ultimate Wingman! In this week’s book excerpt, we’ll discuss how B12 helps both folate and boring-basic-biotin, and why this makes B12 a good energy drink ingredient.

B12 as Folate’s Wingman

Remember when we talked about what folate does? Cells that rely on folate for growth and maturation also depend on B12 because it recycles folate, restoring it for the next round of DNA synthesis. Without B12, folate gets used up and stuck with a single carbon group. That’s like trying to take a cup of coffee from someone when you’re already holding a cup of water in each hand. To make sure sells get enough DNA to mature and divide, B12 and folate have to work as a team.

But that’s not the only vitamin B12 assists:

B12 as a side-kick to Boring Basic Biotin

One molecule of fat has three fatty acids, like a three-pronged fork. Each fatty acid is a chain of carbons. Each chain gets oxidized (broken down) two carbons at a time. This becomes a problem when there’s only thee left, so a special reaction takes place for the last three in the chain.

For the science nerds: That reaction is the transformation of a 3-carbon molecule (methylmalonyl CoA) to a 4-carbon molecule (succinyl CoA). CoA is short for coenzyme A.

Vitamin B12 helps Boring Basic Biotin handle these odd numbered units so they can get metabolized into energy through the Krebs cycle.

Why B12 makes a good energy drink ingredient

The Krebs cycle is a giant wheel of reactions that leads to massive amount of energy per turn. Since B12 helps fats get “into shape” (as in, from odd-to-even numbered) to enter the Krebs cycle, B12 is facilitating the production of energy. It may not be as boring as biotin or as amazing as niacin (my favorite B-vitamin), but B12 gets the award for the best team player.

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To learn more about B12 and the other B-vitamins, stay tuned for next week’s book excerpt as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide (now on Audible!!!).

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What is Vitamin B12, really? Book Excerpt of the Week

What is Vitamin B12, really? Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For last week’s book excerpt from the Energy Drink Guide, we talked about what vitamin B6 does. This week, we move into the Vitamin B12 chapter. Before we can talk about what B12 does, we have to talk about where it comes from…bacteria!

Did you know ALL B12 comes from bacterial fermentation?

Vitamin B12 can be found in food sources like meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, and dairy because the animals are the vessel for this bacterial fermentation. Plants don’t make B12, and they only provide B12 if they’ve been contaminated with soil that contains it (e.g. from the animal gut to the poop to the soil to the plant).

Certain natural vitamins are superior to their synthetic counterparts, and vice versa — remember when we talked about synthetic vs natural folate and the bling rings? But with vitamin B12, all B12 compounds are made through fermentation of bacteria, fungi, or algae.

Whether this fermentation occurs in the stomach of a cow or in a lab doesn’t affect the active structure or function of the vitamin.

 

Okay, phew – so B12 comes from bacteria…and that’s fine…

…But we’re not done with the fear-mongering.

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DO NOT PANIC if you come across a website that suggests synthetic B12 is poison because it’s cyanide. The association is irrelevant, just like the association between Chloride and SODIUM Chloride. The context makes all the difference. Furthermore, the dosage makes the difference between a poison and a cure (paraphrasing the Father of Toxicology, Paracelsus).

To learn more about B12 and the other B-vitamins, stay tuned for next week’s book excerpt as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide (now on Audible!!!).

Let’s connect!

 

What does Vitamin B6 do? Book Excerpt of the Week

What does Vitamin B6 do? Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For last week’s book excerpt from the Energy Drink Guide, we talked about where we get Vitamin B6 (aside from energy drinks, other sports supplements, and fortified foods like breakfast cereals). This week’s book excerpt is about what vitamin B6 does.

Vitamin B6 helps the body make protein. Ever heard of essential and non-essential amino acids? Vitamin B6 helps our bodies make those non-essential amino acids…(through a process called transamination, for you biochem nerds). B6 also helps us maintain optimal blood sugar levels.

what does b6 do

Gluconeogenesis = creating new glucose.
Glycogenolysis = breaking down the stored form of glucose into its itty-bitty pieces.

Breaking down the stored form of glucose means we can tap into those reserves when we need them. And this isn’t just for emergencies – our bodies go through glycogenolysis all the time. If B-vitamins were all Marvel Avengers, Vitamin B6 would be another star member, like thiamin, riboflavin, and especially (my favorite) niacin.

Vitamin B6 has several more jobs that are important and not boring like other vitamins (*cough, #boringbasicbiotin ) BUT we’ll have to talk about that next week and/or you’ll have to get a copy of my book “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks – How They Work, Why They Work, How To Use Them Safely” available on Audible, Amazon, and wherever books are sold.

To learn more about riboflavin and the other B-vitamins, stay tuned for next week’s book excerpt as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

Let’s connect!

 

Where Does Vitamin B6 Come From? Science of Energy Drinks – Book Excerpt of the Week

greeneyedguide

For this week’s book excerpt from the Energy Drink Guide, we enter the Vitamin B6 chapter of Part Three: How Do They Work. Vitamin B6 is often included in energy drinks, AS WELL AS many other sports supplements! Before we get into what B6 does, let’s talk about where we get it.

Vitamin B6
We get B6 from MUSCLES! When we get to what B6 does, it will become obvious why B6 lives in muscles.

*no spoilers*.

Meat and fish are the best sources of B6 because meat has muscles…Potatoes have eyes though. (ha-ha-ha…) Potatoes are a good source of B6, as well as carrots, spinach, avocados, and bananas.
Stay tuned for more book excerpts from my book about energy drinks and their ingredients, “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks, How They Work, Why They Work How To Use Them Safely” available on Audible and also on Amazon as an e-book, paperback, and hardcover!

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The Difference Between Folate and Folic Acid – Book Excerpt of the Week

The Difference Between Folate and Folic Acid – Book Excerpt of the Week

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Have you ever wondered about the difference between folic acid and folate? In this Book Excerpt of the Week, we enter the Folate/Folic Acid chapter of the Energy Drink Guide: Part III – How Do They Work. Before we talk about what folate does, we have to talk about what it is, and where it comes from.

Folic Acid book excerpt

Folic Acid is a term reserved for the SYNTHETIC form of folate whereas Folate or Folacin are general names for a group of nutritionally identical compounds.

If the amino acid Glutamic Acid is a bling necklace, Folic Acid always has one, whereas the natural kind, folate, almost always has three.

Folic acid is synthetic but still prevents spina bifida like natural folate. In fact, because folic acid has less bling (fewer glutamic acids hanging off it) it is easier to digest than natural folate.

Folic Acid and folate are indistinguishable once they’re absorbed and get to the liver.

🌱🌳🌿☘🍀FOLATE gets its name from FOLIUM, the Latin word for LEAF. And wouldn’t you know it, dark green leafy veggies are the best sources of folate. Other sources include asparagus, dried beans, eggs, fortified breakfast cereals (obviously) and oranges.

❓Does your favorite energy drink have folate❓

STAY TUNED every Monday/Tuesday for more book excerpts and the science behind energy drink ingredients as we continue our page-by-page exploration through the Energy Drink Guide.

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