illnesshacker: Medical information and health advice you can trust.

Vitamin B13; Deficiency Symptoms, Food Source, Health Benefit

Vitamin B13 (orotic acid) is involved in the synthesis of phospholipids, nucleic acids, bilirubin. This material is non-toxic, since there are no side effects from its excess in the body. The daily requirement for each person may vary depending on age, presence of severe disease, exercise, diet.It also helps your body absorb and use the minerals magnesium and calcium.

This vitamin is water soluble and is rapidly degraded under the influence of temperature.

Symptoms of Vitamin B13 Deficiency

It is rare for orotic acid deficiency to occur, but if it does symptoms can include:

Cell degeneration
Heart problems
Premature aging
Mental retardation
Anemia
The appearance of crystals in the urine
Degeneration of cells
Impaired immunity
Low vitamin B12 levels
Problems related to heart
Weight gain
Large and abnormal sized blood cells
Skin problems
Disorders within the liver
Mental retardation
Complaints of premature aging
Lower immunity
Crystallized urine
Skin problems
Liver disorders
Large blood cells
Vitamin B12 deficiency

Food Source of Vitamin B13

The top vitamin B13 food sources are listed below

Animal sources: These include meat especially the beef.
Plant sources: It is found in the whey as well as in certain vegetables.
Parsnips
Liver
Yeast
Dairy products
Root vegetables
Yogurt
Whey powder

Health Benefits of Vitamin B13

Vitamin B13 offers several different health benefits. It is essential for determining whether or not someone has an ammonia disorder linked to their metabolism.

Maintains healthy hair and skin.
Helps prevent premature aging.
Reduces risk of heart attack.
Used for treating various heart and liver diseases.
Aids in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS).
cirrhosis,
heart failure, chronic type,
viral hepatitis,
gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer,
infectious disease,
nephropathy,
post-operative recovery period.
Vitamin B13 activates the processes of hematopoiesis, for erythrocytes and leukocytes .
It stimulates protein synthesis.
Has beneficial effect on liver function and improves its performance.
Involved in the transformation of pantothenic and folic acid.
Participates in the synthesis of the amino acid methionine, and is essential for the body.
Vitamin B13 is favorable for the treatment of diseases of the heart and liver. There is evidence that it increases the ability to fertility and improves the process of development of the fetus during pregnancy.
Orotic acid reduces the risk of anemia and even can prevent the premature aging

You Might Also Like Postprandial Distress Syndrome - Symptoms, Treatment

Physiological Functions

It is important for metabolism of folic acid and the vitamin B12.
Vitamin B13 (Orotic Acid) is found to be important in genetics.
It is used in the treatment of certain heart diseases as well as liver diseases.
It is good in the treatment of dangerous diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS).
Vitamin B13 provides health to the skin as well as the hairs and nails.
It prevents from the aging, particularly premature aging.
It is beneficial in those patients who have suffered from a heart attack; there it may prevent its recurrence in those patients. Especially magnesium orotate which is found useful in reducing the severity of heart diseases of chronic nature. It prevents heart remodeling as well.
Determination of orotic acid is found beneficial in delineating certain causes such as the cause of increasing levels of ammonia (hyperammonemia)
Orotic acid seems to have some direct effects on the metabolism of folic acid. Both the folic acid and orotic acid take parts in DNA synthesis. Its vitamin-like effects are thought to be because of this reason that it helps in DNA and RNA manufacturing in the body.
It is an important indicator of ammonia disorders related to its metabolism that can lead to illnesses or even death in people with inborn errors of metabolism as a result of a defect in urea cycle or other genetic problems. People having abnormal liver functions because of some viral infections, drug abuse or alcoholism and people with bleeding from their digestive tract usually excrete increase levels of orotic acid in their urine.