Beetroot and vitamin B12: what each one is, and why they share a capsule
Beetroot is a root vegetable. Vitamin B12 is a vitamin that plants don't provide. Here is what each one is, how much B12 UK adults need, where it comes from in food, and why vegans look for it.
- Beetroot and vitamin B12 are two different things: beetroot is a root vegetable coloured by pigments called betalains, while vitamin B12 is a cobalt-containing vitamin that beetroot does not contain.
- Beetroot and vitamin B12 capsules pair a concentrated beetroot extract with a measured dose of B12, often with grape seed extract too, so one vegan capsule carries a vitamin and two plant extracts.
- The NHS says adults aged 19 to 64 need about 1.5 micrograms of vitamin B12 a day; supplement labels compare B12 with a nutrient reference value of 2.5 micrograms.
- Vitamin B12 is found naturally in meat, fish, milk, cheese and eggs, and is added to some breakfast cereals, soya drinks and yeast extract.
- Because B12 is not found naturally in fruit, vegetables or grains, the NHS notes that vegans may not get enough from food and may need fortified foods or a supplement.
How much vitamin B12 UK adults need
What the NHS says adults aged 19 to 64 need each day, based on the UK reference nutrient intake
The nutrient reference value (NRV) that supplement labels use for their % figures
The NHS says taking 2mg (2,000mcg) or less a day of B12 in supplements is unlikely to cause any harm
NHS, Vitamin B; UK Dietary Reference Values (COMA, 1991); Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 Annex XIII as retained in GB law.
Where vitamin B12 comes from on a plate
Approximate vitamin B12 in everyday portions, against the 1.5mcg a day the NHS says adults need. Beetroot, like other vegetables, contains none.
Calculated from McCance and Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID), 2021, per 100g. Beetroot, raw or cooked: 0mcg. Amounts vary by product.
Where B12 could sit in your day
Tick what fits how you eat. The amounts come from UK food composition data and are approximate.
- Breakfast
Fortified cereal
30g of fortified bran flakes holds about 0.7mcg. Check the label, as not every cereal is fortified.
- Breakfast
Fortified soya drink
A 200ml glass of fortified soya drink holds about 0.8mcg.
- Breakfast
Two eggs
Two eggs hold about 2.7mcg.
- Lunch
Yeast extract on toast
A thin 4g spread of fortified yeast extract holds about 0.6mcg.
- Lunch
Cheddar
30g of Cheddar holds about 0.7mcg.
- Dinner
Salmon or sardines
A 120g salmon fillet holds about 3mcg; 60g of canned sardines about 6.5mcg.
- Any time
One capsule with water
Take it as the label directs, and don't exceed the stated daily amount.
- Any time
A glass of milk
200ml of semi-skimmed milk holds about 1.8mcg.
Calculated from CoFID, 2021. Nothing you tick is saved or sent.
Three ingredients, three different things
A vitamin, a root and a seed. Here is what each one actually is.
A vitamin built around cobalt.
How it worksVitamin B12 is a large, intricate molecule with a single cobalt atom at its centre, which is why its family is called the cobalamins. Methylcobalamin carries a methyl group on the cobalt and is one of the forms found in the body; cyanocobalamin is the form usually made commercially.
The everyday context1,000mcg of vitamin B12 as methylcobalamin, which is 40,000% of the 2.5mcg NRV.
A root coloured by betalains.
How it worksBeetroot is the swollen root of Beta vulgaris, the same species as chard and sugar beet. Its deep red comes from betalains, mainly betanin, rather than the anthocyanins that colour berries. Researchers are studying betalains and beetroot's natural nitrate in laboratory and human work.
The everyday context180mg of a 50:1 beetroot extract, equivalent to 9,000mg of beetroot.
Small seeds, long chains.
How it worksGrape seeds are rich in proanthocyanidins: chains of catechin and epicatechin units linked together. Short chains are called oligomers. Researchers are studying how these compounds behave, and note that only the shorter chains are thought to be absorbed.
The everyday context100mg of a 10:1 grape seed extract, equivalent to 1,000mg of grape seed.
One vitamin, two plant extracts
Beetroot doesn't contain vitamin B12, and B12 doesn't come from beetroot. They sit together in some capsules for a practical reason: a vitamin that plants don't provide, alongside two plant extracts, in a single vegan format.
Putting a measured dose of B12 next to a concentrated beetroot extract and a grape seed extract means one vegan capsule a day, rather than three separate products. Each ingredient is listed with its own amount, so you can see exactly what you're getting.
Beetroot holds more nitrate than most roots
Nitrate occurs naturally in vegetables. Leafy greens usually hold the most; among roots, beetroot stands out. Median nitrate in European samples, in milligrams per kilogram.
EFSA Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain, Nitrate in vegetables, EFSA Journal 2008; 689, Tables 7 and 10. Levels vary with season, soil and growing method.
The vitamin that took decades to draw
1948: the first crystals
Red crystals of vitamin B12 were isolated from liver in 1948, by Lester Smith and Parker at Glaxo in the UK and by Folkers and colleagues at Merck in the US, working separately.
The 1950s: the structure
Dorothy Hodgkin's team in Oxford used X-ray crystallography to work out B12's structure, a molecule larger and more complex than any solved that way before.
1964: the Nobel Prize
Hodgkin was the sole winner of the 1964 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, for determining the structures of biologically important molecules by X-ray techniques.
What's inside one capsule
A cobalamin with a methyl group on its central cobalt atom. Suitable for vegans.
Concentrated from the root of Beta vulgaris, the source of betalain pigments.
Extracted from grape seeds, a source of proanthocyanidins.
Beetroot, Vitamin B12 & Grape Seed Capsules
1,000mcg vitamin B12 as methylcobalamin (40,000% NRV), 180mg beetroot extract 50:1 (equivalent to 9,000mg) and 100mg grape seed extract 10:1 (equivalent to 1,000mg) in one vegan capsule. 60 capsules.
Questions
Does beetroot contain vitamin B12?
Why are beetroot and vitamin B12 in the same capsule?
How much vitamin B12 do adults need a day?
Is 1,000mcg of B12 too much?
Where do vegans get vitamin B12?
NHS. Vitamins and minerals: vitamin B.
NHS. The vegan diet.
Department of Health. Dietary Reference Values for Food Energy and Nutrients for the United Kingdom (COMA report 41), 1991.
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, Annex XIII, as retained in GB law.
Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. McCance and Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID), 2021.
EFSA Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain. Nitrate in vegetables. EFSA Journal, 2008; 689.
Clifford T, Howatson G, West DJ, Stevenson EJ. The potential benefits of red beetroot supplementation in health and disease. Nutrients, 2015; 7(4): 2801–2822.
Padilla-González GF, Grosskopf E, Sadgrove NJ, Simmonds MSJ. Chemical diversity of flavan-3-ols in grape seeds: modulating factors and quality requirements. Plants, 2022; 11(6): 809.
University of Bristol, School of Chemistry. Vitamin B12 and Professor Dorothy Hodgkin, Molecule of the Month.
Food supplements should not be used as a substitute for a varied diet and a healthy lifestyle.
