Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) for Micronutrient Deficiency

Verdict: Essential and lifesaving for thiamine deficiency

For documented thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency, supplementation is established, often lifesaving standard care that reverses beriberi, Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, and refeeding-related deficiency. This strong grade applies only to correcting deficiency, not to general uses such as fatigue, diabetic neuropathy, or heart failure in people who are not deficient.

S 🟢 S Strong Evidence Published

🔬Why this grade7-layer evidence engine

Thiamine is the textbook treatment for thiamine-deficiency diseases, and the clinical literature is unanimous. A 2026 systematic review of beriberi (PMID 40753975) notes that wet (cardiac) beriberi can reverse dramatically within hours to days of intravenous thiamine, and a refeeding-syndrome review (PMID 28087222) confirms thiamine loading of roughly 100-300 mg/day prevents complications with consistent improvement and no harm. An older review of thiamine biology (PMID 29477220) reinforces deficiency correction as the definitive indication.

Notably, no placebo-controlled trial pits thiamine against nothing, because withholding it from at-risk patients is considered unethical given established efficacy. The two high-quality randomized trials are dose comparisons that assume thiamine works: a Cochrane review (PMID 23818100, one analyzable trial, n=107) found 200 mg/day beat 5 mg/day on a memory test but could not pin down optimal dose or route, and a 2022 double-blind RCT (PMID 35428992, n=520) found high doses no better than standard parenteral doses, with all arms improving.

Regulators and major clinics align. The WHO lists thiamine as an essential medicine for treating deficiency, EFSA recognizes its role in normal energy metabolism and nerve and heart function, and NIH, Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, and Harvard all describe supplementation as standard care for diagnosed deficiency. The UK NHS is cautious only about routine use in healthy adults who get enough from diet, which does not conflict with the deficiency-treatment claim.

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Scoring transparency

All scores computed by a 7-layer evidence engine — fully auditable
Raw score 0.80
D
C
B
A
S
← counter-evidence / ineffectiveeffective / strong evidence →
Final grade
S · Published
Confidence
86%
Highly consistent evidence
Evidence level
E1
Cochrane high-quality SR/MA

How strongly each layer supports this effect

lower = less supportive
L1 ExamineGlobal benchmark
0.50
L3 MechanismPlausibility
0.75
L2 PubMedPrimary literature
0.85
L5 Clinical bodiesAuthoritative stance
0.85
L11 AI re-checkIndependent read
0.95
Against Mixed Supports
View the full decision path (audit trail)
  1. compute_raw_score — 加權公式: L2×0.30 + L3×0.25 + L5×0.25 + L11×0.10 + L1×0.10 = 0.8
  2. tier_from_score — 依分數區間映射至 tier letter
  3. apply_hec_rules — 高品質 SR/MA 顯示 positive (1 篇 > 0 negative)
  4. tier_strict_requirement_check — A 級條件達標
  5. detect_disputes — 偵測到 0 個 hard + 0 個 soft dispute
  6. decide_status — 依 tier + dispute 結果決定 status

📄PubMed studies (5)L2 · primary research & systematic reviews

Thiamine for prevention and treatment of Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome in people who abuse alcohol
PMID: 23818100 2013 Cochrane SR n = 177
Finding: A significant difference favoured 200 mg/day over 5 mg/day on the delayed alternation test, but the review concluded evidence from RCTs is insufficient to guide clinicians on the dose, frequency, route or duration of thiamine for preventing or treating Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome in alcohol abuse; importantly the included trials tested DOSE comparisons, not thiamine vs no-thiamine, because withholding thiamine from at-risk patients is considered unethical given established efficacy.
🟢 High quality Government
View on PubMed
What is the optimum thiamine dose to treat or prevent Wernicke's encephalopathy or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome? Results of a randomized controlled trial
PMID: 35428992 2022 RCT (double-blind) n = 520
Finding: No clear benefit of high-dose thiamine over intermediate or lower doses on cognitive outcomes over the intervals examined; all dose arms improved, confirming thiamine repletion works while indicating standard parenteral doses suffice (the trial assumes baseline efficacy of thiamine and compares magnitudes, not thiamine vs placebo).
🟢 High quality Government
View on PubMed
An Overview of Beriberi
PMID: 40753975 2026 系統性回顧
Finding: Thiamine deficiency is the established cause of beriberi; the review recommends immediate thiamine administration (100-300 mg/day, IV/IM/oral) once clinical manifestations appear, noting diagnosis can be confirmed by therapeutic response. Wet beriberi cardiac failure can reverse dramatically within hours-days of IV thiamine, illustrating definitive deficiency-correction efficacy.
Academic
View on PubMed
Thiamin
PMID: 29477220 2018 系統性回顧
Finding: Reviews the discovery that thiamine deficiency causes beriberi and documents that deficiency-related signs (often mistaken for psychosomatic/functional disease) respond to thiamine repletion, with some genetic/high-demand states requiring megadose thiamine or derivatives; reinforces deficiency correction as the definitive, textbook indication for thiamine.
🟠 Limited quality
View on PubMed
Revisiting the refeeding syndrome: Results of a systematic review
PMID: 28087222 2017 系統性回顧
Finding: Refeeding precipitates acute thiamine demand and deficiency; reviews consistently recommend thiamine loading (typically 100-300 mg/day) before and during refeeding, with reported clinical improvement and no harm, supporting thiamine as standard-of-care deficiency prophylaxis in refeeding syndrome. Consistent with Steiner & Hewlings 2021 SR (Topics in Clinical Nutrition; mean dose ~173 mg/day, all studies showed symptom improvement, no harm).
Academic
View on PubMed

🏛️Regulatory & authoritative positionsL4/L5 · FDA / EMA / NIH ODS / Cochrane / Mayo …

L4a US FDA
Supportive
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT source↗
L4b EU EFSA
Supportive
a cause and effect relationship has been established between the dietary intake of thiamine and (a) contribution to normal energy-yielding metabolism, (b) contribution to normal neurological function, and (c) contribution to normal function of the heart. source↗
L4c UK NHS
Cautious
Thiamin (vitamin B1) helps: the body break down and release energy from food; keep the nervous system healthy. Adults aged 19 to 64 need about: 1mg a day of thiamin for men; 0.8mg a day of thiamin for women. You should be able to get all the thiamin you need from your daily diet. Thiamin cannot be stored in the body, so you need it in your diet every day. source↗
L4d TW TFDA / 衛福部
Supportive
維生素B1有助於維持能量正常代謝;維生素B1有助於維持皮膚、心臟及神經系統的正常功能;維生素B1有助於維持正常生長 source↗
L4e WHO
Supportive
Thiamine hydrochloride. Injection: 100 mg/mL in 1‑mL ampoule. Tablet: 50 mg (hydrochloride). — listed under 'Vitamins and minerals', WHO Model List of Essential Medicines. source↗
L5a NIH Office of Dietary Supplements
Supportive
Because of the lack of reports of adverse effects from high thiamin intakes (50 mg/day or more) from food or supplements, the FNB did not establish ULs for thiamin. Thiamin deficiency can cause loss of weight and appetite, confusion, memory loss, muscle weakness, and heart problems. source↗
L5b Mayo Clinic
Supportive
Lack of thiamine may lead to a condition called beriberi. Signs of beriberi include loss of appetite, constipation, muscle weakness, pain or tingling in arms or legs, and possible swelling of feet or lower legs. In addition, if severe, lack of thiamine may cause mental depression, memory problems, weakness, shortness of breath, and fast heartbeat. source↗
L5c Cleveland Clinic
Supportive
Thiamine deficiency happens when your body doesn't get or can't use enough vitamin B1. Without enough thiamine, your body can't turn food into energy, which affects your nerves, muscles and heart. Healthcare providers treat thiamine deficiency with thiamine supplements, given by mouth or through an IV depending on how severe your deficiency is. Severe deficiency can cause beriberi or Wernicke-K… source↗
L5d Harvard Health
Supportive
Thiamin (thiamine), or vitamin B1, is a water-soluble vitamin found naturally in some foods... It is required by our bodies to properly use carbohydrates. A deficiency of thiamin can lead to a condition called beriberi. source↗
L5e Specialty Society (condition-mapped)
Supportive
In many areas of rural Southeast Asia, thiamine deficiency is the accepted cause of wet beriberi, which presents with respiratory distress and heart failure and rapidly improves after thiamine administration. (AJCN). WHO (WHO/NHD/99.13): thiamine deficiency "can develop within 2-3 months of inadequate consumption" and "Left untreated, thiamine deficiency leads to disability and death." source↗
PMID 100% verifiedevery citation checked via NCBI Entrez
🔬5 PubMed studiesindependently re-checked by multiple sub-agents
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