The best-known sources of vitamin B include meat, fish and dairy products. But apparently it is also found in countless edible plants.

Getting enough vitamin B is very important. Thus, in all its forms, it plays an important role in energy production and helps maintain a healthy nervous system. In short, vitamin B is essential for the human body. Yet many people, both in rich and developing countries, suffer from a shortage. But in a new study researchers have discovered more than 1000 (!) edible plants that can solve the vitamin B deficiency for thousands of people.

Vitamin B

Vitamin B is found in many foods. But the best-known are probably meat, fish and dairy products, although they can also be found in eggs, legumes and some fresh fruit. You also get vitamin B when you consume grains or nuts. However, not everyone eats enough of these foods. And so there is a real risk of vitamin B deficiency. “More than two billion people worldwide also suffer from malnutrition,” said study researcher Samuel Pironon. “So improving access to a diversity of wild and cultivated plant sources of micronutrients is key to human existence.”

Plant species

In a new study, therefore, researchers decided to dissect plants. Because to what extent do plants actually have Vitamin B? The investigation leads to a surprising discovery. Because the team comes across 1044 plant species that contain five different B vitamins – B1, B2, B3, B5 and B9.

edible plants

It means that vitamin B can be found in many more foods than previously thought. Because more than 1000 hitherto undervalued plant species appear to have essential vitamins that can possibly make an important contribution to the solution of the prevailing vitamin B deficiency. The fact that we didn’t know about this until now is because of the thousands of edible plants that the earth houses, the nutritional value of only a few has been mapped. “We should pay more attention to the incredible diversity of edible plants,” said researcher Aoife Cantwell-Jones. “We can then better understand how they contribute to human nutrition. Our research is an important step in that direction.”

Endangered

However, this does not mean that we can now run into the forest to pick the 1044 plants. 63 plant species are in danger of extinction. An additional 358 plants have pending status, meaning many more may be threatened. Many of these fragile but nutrient-rich species grow in Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The findings therefore emphasize the importance of further conservation efforts to ensure that future generations can continue to benefit from a diverse group of edible and nutrient-rich plants.

Non-threatened

Which vitamin-B-rich plant species can we eat with confidence? Including the cereal Fonio and wild relatives from the genus Digitaria†

phonio. Image: RBG Kew

These plants have a high nutritional value and grow well on poor and dry soil, such as on the savannas of West Africa. “They can therefore be an important food source, as they grow quickly and can withstand hot and dry climates,” the researchers write. Closer to home, in Europe, this grain is increasingly appreciated because it is gluten-free, healthy and also easy to grow in a sustainable way. In addition, various oats can be important sources of thiamine (B1).

The study illustrates how fundamental knowledge of plant diversity can provide tools for providing people with food. In addition, it shows how nature can contribute to solve the current problem of widespread vitamin B deficiency. However, in order to take advantage of the newly discovered potential vitamin B-rich plants, it is important that we know whether or not they are in danger of extinction. “But then they could potentially provide a welcome change to our diet alongside other crops,” says Cantwell-Jones. “Provided we don’t pick them too much in the wild.”