EP.340/ How Low vitamin b1 can affect period endo pain and nerve sensitivity
Today we’re continuing on with our discussion around micronutrients and their impact on endo and period pain
In this episode, we’re beginning with the first of the B vitamins, B1, otherwise known as thiamine.
B1 plays various roles in the body, but in terms of how it can help us with endo and period pain, it helps to regulate muscle contractions and nerve signalling.
Remember, as we’ve been exploring, endo and dysmenorrhea (a.k.a period pain) are primarily caused by elevated levels of inflammatory immune chemicals called prostaglandins. These prostaglandins cause excessive uterine contractions at menstruation. The prostaglandins and contractions fire off nerve signals to the brain, which trigger pain production.
Additionally, B1 is also an antioxidant. Antioxidants are nutrients that fight off oxidative stress, a damaging process that contributes to excessive production of inflammation (including those prostaglandins) and endo development and progression.
Whilst certain nutrients like omega 3 fatty acids reduce these inflammatory prostaglandins, B1 works differently. Essentially, sufficient levels of B1 reduce the effects of these inflammatory prostaglandins by aiding muscle relaxation of the uterus, and also reducing nerve sensitivity. In short, B1 helps our body to be more resilient against prostaglandins and their effects on muscle contraction and pain signals.
So, let’s look at the research. Most of the data is based on treatment of dysmenorrhea with B1, but there are a few papers suggesting deficiency could be linked to more severe period pain, especially as symptoms of deficiency include reduced pain tolerance and muscle cramping. One survey of 204 women found that the higher the B1 intake, the less menstrual symptoms, including pain.
But let’s look at endo specifically. A cross-sectional study of 3351 participants between 1999 and 2006 found that a higher dietary intake of B1 was associated with a reduced risk of endometriosis. The researchers theorise that B1’s antioxidant properties may be helpful in protecting against endo development and progression.
So what about pain relief?
A recent systematic review and meta analysis found that B1 effectively contributed to dysmenorrhea pain management. In fact, numerous studies have shown significant improvements with period pain using B1 supplementation. For example, one study compared ibuprofen and B1 treatment and found that B1 was more effective than ibuprofen at achieving complete eradication of pain, and was a safer alternative to NSAIDs. Additionally, the study showed that pain reduction was more significant with continued use over three cycles.
Whilst I couldn’t find studies specifically on endometriosis pain relief and B1, as we explored earlier, there is numerous research linking low B1 levels or intake with endometriosis, and one recent review recommends the use of 100mg vitamin B1 for endo symptom severity. And we have seen in the research that B1 supplementation can play a significant role in pain reduction in period pain, but also in musculoskeletal pain in general.
If you’re interested in supplementing with B1, the study comparing B1 to ibuprofen used 100mg every luteal phase for three cycles and demonstrated, the best effects came after using B1 for two or more cycles. Another study, comparing fish oil and B1, used 100mg per day every day, for two cycles. As B1 has a good safety profile, it could be a low risk option for managing your pain, but chat with your doctor about ongoing use. The NHS advises supplementing with 100mg or less per day is unlikely to cause harm.
However, we want to ensure adequate intake of food sources as well. Especially as the cross-sectional study I mentioned earlier, found that people with endo had a reduced intake of B1 foods.
Additionally, another study found a high intake of B1 from food sources reduced PMS severity, including pain.
Food sources of vitamin B1 include:
Pork (which is the richest source of B1, but please be mindful to choose unprocessed pork so for example a lean pork chop rather than bacon)
Green peas, asparagus and acorn squash
Beans and lentils, especially white beans, black beans, black-eyes peas and lentils
Nuts and seeds, in particular flax seeds, sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts and pistachios
Fish, especially salmon, tuna and shell fish
Yoghurt
Liver
Tofu
Brown rice
Quinoa
Okay, so that’s it for today! I hope you’ve found this episode insightful and helpful, and I’ll see you next week.
Show notes
B1 properties
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.21.639433v1.full
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5625949/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4825494/pdf/GJHS-6-144.pdf
Period pain and low B1 levels
https://www.jpagonline.org/article/S1083-3188(06)00186-0/abstract
https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE|A123709137
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17455057231185624?icid=int.sj-full-text.similar-articles.9
Endo and low B1 levels
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.21.639433v1.full
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11536846/
B1 and period, endo and musculoskeletal pain relief
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7146731/pdf/jcs-9-47.pdf
https://academicjournals.org/journal/AJPP/article-full-text-pdf/71051DE28902
https://www.isca.me/IJBS/Archive/v1i1/9.ISCA-JBS-2012-022.pdf
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25363189/
https://poliklinika-harni.hr/images/uploads/2743/nutricijski-protokol-endometiozra.pdf
B1 doses
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25363189/
https://academicjournals.org/journal/AJPP/article-full-text-pdf/71051DE28902
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-b/
B1 food intake
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.21.639433v1.full
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002916523022773?via=ihub
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-b/
https://www.myfooddata.com/articles/thiamin-b1-foods.php
https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/vitamin-b1/
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Produced by Chris Robson