NUTRIENT LIBRARY

Nutrient Library - Riboflavin

Riboflavin

What does it do?
How much do you need?
What are the best food sources?
What happens if you don’t get enough?
What happens if you get too much?
What are some recipes that are good sources of riboflavin?
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What does it do?

Riboflavin is a water-soluble B vitamin that helps produce energy in all cells in your body and is critical for the metabolism of fats, carbohydrates and protein. Ultraviolet light, such as sunlight, destroys riboflavin. You may have heard the story about why milk went from being delivered in glass containers to opaque or cardboard containers: to prevent sunlight from destroying the vitamins contained inside. If so, you were hearing about riboflavin!

How much do you need?

The following table lists the recommended intake for healthy people based on current scientific information.

Life Stage Group	Recommended Dietary Allowance / Adequate Intake (see note below)	Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL)
Infants	(milligrams/day)
0-6 mo. 7-12 mo.	0.3* 0.4*	Not determinable due to lack of data on adverse effects and concern about inability to handle excess amounts. Source should be from food only to prevent high levels of intake.
Children
1-3 yr. 4-8 yr.	0.5 0.6
Males
9-13 yr. 14-18 yr. 19-30 yr. 31-50 yr. 51-70 yr. > 70 yr.	0.9 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3
Females
9-13 yr. 14-18 yr. 19-30 yr. 31-50 yr. 51-70 yr. > 70 yr.	0.9 1.0 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1
Pregnancy
< 18 yr. 19-30 yr. 31-50 yr.	1.4 1.4 1.4
Lactation
< 18 yr. 19-30 yr. 31-50 yr.	1.6 1.6 1.6

NOTE: The table is adapted from the Dietary Reference Intakes reports. Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs), when available, are in bold type; Adequate Intakes (AIs) are followed by an asterisk(*). RDAs and AIs may both be used as goals for individual intake. RDAs are set to meet the needs of almost all individuals (97 to 98 percent) in a group. For healthy breastfed infants, the AI is the mean intake. The AI for other life stage and gender groups is believed to cover the needs of all individuals in the group, but lack of data means the percentage of individuals covered by this intake cannot be specified with confidence.
UL = The maximum level of daily nutrient intake that is likely to pose no risk of adverse effects. Unless otherwise specified, the UL represents total intake from food, water and supplements.

What are the best food sources?

Major sources of riboflavin include milk and other dairy foods. Eggs, green leafy vegetables and enriched bread and grain products also contain smaller amounts. See more food sources and calculate your daily intake.

What happens if you don’t get enough?

Riboflavin deficiency, known as ariboflavinosis, is usually accompanied by other nutrient deficiencies and may specifically lead to deficiencies of vitamin B6 and niacin. It is not known how common riboflavin deficiency is in the United States because its symptoms—which include sore throat, magenta tongue, cracks and sores on the outside of the mouth, dry and flaky skin, and dandruff—are not as severe as the other nutrient deficiencies that may accompany it. Thus, ariboflavinosis may be underdiagnosed.

What happens if you get too much?

It’s not likely that you will experience adverse effects from consuming too much riboflavin for a couple of reasons: limited absorption by the gastrointestinal tract, and because excess amounts are excreted by the body. However, studies have not specifically looked at the harmful effects of excess riboflavin, so stay within the range of recommended intakes.