Beriberi – Vitamin B1 Deficiency Causes, Symptoms, Treatment

What is Beriberi?

Thiamine, often known as vitamin B1, is a vital component that is important for maintaining the neurological system and turning food into energy.  Before moving forward let us know what this ailment is all about. A thiamine shortage can result in beri beri disease, a disorder that impacts the nervous and cardiovascular systems and causes symptoms including exhaustion, disorientation, dyspnea, and in extreme situations, nerve damage or heart failure.
Fortunately, with minor dietary and lifestyle changes, beri beri sickness can be avoided. This blog discusses how to protect your health by choosing wisely to keep your thiamine levels in check.

Beriberi is a condition that develops when a person has a severe thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency. Thiamine is a vitamin that humans obtain from their diet. The nutrient has multiple roles in the human body—some of the functions of the nutrient includes.

• To breakdown carbohydrates
• To help in muscle contraction
• To assist in creating glucose
• To help in conductions in nerve cells
• This condition can easily become life-threatening as the human body needs thiamine to function properly.

Understanding Beriberi Disease

There are two primary kinds of this disease:

1. Wet Beriberi: Impacts the cardiovascular system, resulting in symptoms such as heart problems, fluid retention, and dyspnea.
2. Dry Beriberi: Impacts the neurological system, resulting in numbness, weakness, and problems with coordination.

Thiamine deficiency is the main and ultimate cause of beriberi disease and can be brought on by a poor diet, long-term drunkenness, or illnesses including gastrointestinal diseases that affect the body’s ability to absorb nutrients.

Why Thiamine Matters

Thiamine is essential for the following:

• Energy Production: Thiamine helps in the conversion of carbohydrates into satisfying energy.
• Nerve Function: Apt functioning of the nervous system is supported and aided.
• Heart Health: It aids in nerve signaling and muscle contraction by maintaining healthy cardiovascular health.

The onset of beri beri disease emerges when enough thiamine doesn’t reach our blood streams causing irregular body functions.

Signs and Symptoms of Beriberi           

The symptoms of beriberi varies from person to person. Some common signs of wet beriberi include:

• An increased heart rate
• Shortness of breath
• Swelling of the legs and feet
• Low levels of energy

Some symptoms of dry beriberi include:

• Vomiting
• Lack of appetite
• Confusion
• Difficulty in walking
• Body aches and pains
• Numbness in your hands as well as feet

Beriberi can often develop into Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Some symptoms of the Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome include:

• Memory loss
• General confusion
• Rapid eye movement
• Blurred vision or double vision
• Hallucinations
• Loss of muscle coordination

Also Read – Vitamin B12 Deficiency and its Diagnosis

Simple Lifestyle Changes to Prevent Beriberi Disease

1. Adopt a Balanced Diet
   Eating a diet high in thiamine is the best method of preventing this illness. Add the following items to your meals:
   1. Whole grains (whole wheat, oats, and brown rice)
   2. Legumes, including peas, beans, and lentils
   3. Seeds and nuts (flaxseeds, sunflower seeds)
   4. Foods enhanced with thiamine (fortified bread, pasta, and cereals)
   5. Meats that are lean, especially pork
   6. Fish such as tuna and salmon
   7. Eggs and dairy products
2. Limit Processed Foods
   The majority of the thiamine in refined grains, including white rice and bread, is lost during processing. So, to be sure you’re getting enough nutrients, choose whole-grain substitutes.
3. Moderate Alcohol Consumption
   Chronic alcohol consumption raises the risk of beri beri disease by interfering with the digestion and utilization of thiamine. Reducing alcohol can help balance thiamine levels for overall health.
4. Smart Cooking
   Thiamine is water and heat-sensitive. Foods high in thiamine may lose some of their nutritional value if they are overcooked or boiled. Instead of boiling, use steaming or sautéing to preserve thiamine. Also, steer clear of long cooking durations.
5. Consider Supplementation
   Consult a healthcare professional about taking a thiamine supplement if your dietary intake is inadequate or if you are at a higher risk (for example, because of pregnancy, lactation, or a chronic illness). Supplements are especially helpful for people with absorption problems or those recuperating from this illness.
6. Stay Informed
   It is important to be aware. This disease is more common in areas where polished rice is a staple food. The fight against thiamine deficiency can be aided by educational programs that encourage dietary diversification.

Underlying Causes of Beriberi

The main cause of beriberi is low levels of thiamine in the body. There could also be the case that the body is not being able to process the thiamine in the body, which can lead to the development of beriberi.

Beriberi is mostly seen in countries where people have unwholesome diets. In most countries where people do have a balanced diet, beriberi is seen in people who have an alcohol consumption issue. This is mostly due to the fact that alcohol consumption can cause the body to be unable to process thiamine. The disease can be seen in women who have extreme nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (hyperemesis gravidarum), during lactation when the dietary requirement of thiamine is high, in people with AIDS, and after bariatric surgery.

Beriberi is not a genetic condition, and there are very rare cases of that happening. There is something known as genetic beriberi which is hereditary, but this is a very rare occurrence.

Management and Treatment of Beriberi

The best treatment for beriberi is to increase the body’s thiamine levels. This is done either by supplements or injections. When the case is not too severe, then supplements are given to the patient to raise their thiamine levels gradually. But when the patient has gone too far then the thiamine levels can be increased by providing the patient thiamine via injections.

During the treatment, regular blood tests are also requested to check the patient’s thiamine levels. Changes in the patient’s diet are also requested by the doctors. Once the patient has reached the right thiamine levels, the dosage is reduced, but the medication is still kept going.

Treatment is also done quickly as beriberi can easily affect the heart as well as the nervous system. This damage is reversible, but if not given treatment on time, there could be complications that can easily affect the patient in dire ways.

Conclusion: Prevention is Better Than Cure

You might have heard of the statement ‘Small changes today can prevent serious health issues tomorrow’. This statement somewhere holds strength. A diet rich in whole grains, lean proteins, and fortified foods, along with smart cooking techniques and constrained alcohol consumption, can ensure you uphold healthy thiamine levels and help prevent beriberi disease.