Vitamin B2, the anti-migraine vitamin
Vitamin B2 is vital for energy production, skin, eyes and blood. Recently, it's also been shown to be effective in preventing migraines
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Vitamin B2 is usually called riboflavin(e). Other names by which it is known include lactoflavin (when it is found in milk) and vitamin G. It is regarded as extremely safe, so much so that it is used as a food coloring. A high intake will make the urine a brighter yellow than usual, but this is not dangerous, in fact there are no known cases of overdose.
Like other B vitamins, riboflavin works alongside the other B vitamins, so even if supplementing specifically to increase B2, a B complex supplement should be taken along with it. Because riboflavin (as well as other vitamins) is destroyed by light, any supplements which contain it should be kept in a dark colored container, and in a position out of direct sunlight, preferably a closed cupboard.
Liver, mushrooms, carrot, a veritable riboflavin feast
Deficiency can be caused by oral contraceptives, alcohol and tobacco, but if you avoid these there should be no real need to supplement B2 (except as a migraine prevention, see below), because it is readily obtainable from your regular diet. However, patients with cataracts should not take riboflavin supplements totalling more than 10 mg per day (on the other hand, riboflavin deficiency seems to increase the occurrence of cataracts).
Best food sources (high to low) include: button or field mushrooms, liver, spinach, summer squash (courgettes etc), asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, Swiss chard, mustard greens, collard greens, romaine (cos) lettuce, celery, milk, broccoli, turnip greens, venison, yogurt, eggs, green beans, bell (sweet) peppers, kale, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, goats milk, winter squash, green peas, tempeh, soybeans, sardines, almonds and carrots. Bread and cereals are often fortified with riboflavin (i.e. riboflavin is added as a dietary supplement). As you can see from this list, so long as you aren't an alcoholic and regularly eat plenty of vegetables and dairy products, you should be fine.
Riboflavin is used in the body to convert food (protein, fat and sugar) into energy and is important in the development and maintenance of skin, digestive tract, blood and many other parts of the body. Deficiency symptoms include anemia, mouth or lip sores, sensitivity to light, burning and itching eyes, sore throat and tongue, cracking skin at the corners of the mouth, peeling skin and swelling of the mucus membranes. Around 33% of anorexia and bulimia sufferers are deficient in riboflavin and pyridoxine (B6).
It is used as a treatment for many types of ulcer, whether gastric, duodenal or of eye or mouth, and also to treat jaundice in newborns. It may also be used for migraine prophylaxis, see below.
As a supplement, the recommended daily dosage is as follows: infants 0-6 months: 0.3 mg, 7-12 months: 0.4 mg; children 1-3 years: 0.5 mg, 4-8 years: 0.6 mg, 9-13 years: 0.9 mg, boys 14-18 years: 1.3 mg, girls 14-18 years: 1 mg; adult males: 1.3 mg, adult females: 1.1 mg. However, these levels are not sufficient where riboflavin is being used as a treatment or preventive.
If you're currently receiving medical treatment, check with your doctor before taking supplements, in particular if you are currently taking tricyclic antidepressants, phenothiazines or probenecid antimalarial drugs.
Migraine and riboflavin
Alternative medicine has regarded riboflavin as a migraine prophylactic (a medicine to help prevent or reduce the occurrence of migraine) for many years. Two recent studies by conventional medical practitioners in 1998 and 2004 have confirmed this, both of which showed a reduction in migraine headaches by about half - that is, people who would normally expect a headache on 4 days of the month only experienced one on 2 days of the month during therapy.
If you suffer from migraines and do not suffer from cataracts, then you may wish to try this for yourself. To do so, you will need to obtain supplies of high-dose riboflavin tablets. The daily dose shown to be effective in both studies was 400 mg/day - which is nearly 400 times the regular RDA! You will also need to take them for some time before you can gauge whether they are working for you, most likely at least a month.
Having surveyed many vitamin suppliers, I have to say that most of them don't sell riboflavin on its own at all, let alone in the sort of dose you need to reduce the incidence of migraine. However, one supplier who does in the UK is Holland & Barrett, who sell 100mg tablets of Vitamin B-2, and iherb (quote SEQ765 for $5 off your first order), who supply both the US and internationally, have a number of similar products on offer.
